The Minnesota Vikings have a massive decision to make about the most important position on their team moving forward.
Vikings are at a crossroads as the enter the 2024 off-season, facing crucial decisions regarding their roster and future direction of the team. Among these decisions is whether to re-sign quarterback Kirk Cousins, whose tenure with the team has been subject of both praise and scrutiny.
But in a crucial year for Kevin O’Connell who has developed a strong rapport with Cousins since their days together in Washington, the safest route is to come to a new contract agreement instead of banking on a rookie or trying to bring in a veteran who won’t play as good as he has.
Cousins, who will turn 36 before next season, led the NFL with 18 touchdown passes and 211 completions when he went down with the injury last season. He appeared to be well on pace for a third straight Pro Bowl appearance after completing 69.5 percent of his passes for 291.4 yards per game. Cousins’ 103.8 quarterback rating ranked third in the NFL at the time.
The Minnesota Vikings were on a roll before the Kirk Cousins injury, winning three straight to move to 4-4 and into the final NFC playoff spot with two months left. Minnesota’s offense was also fantastic, averaging 5.7 yards per play, good for the sixth-most in the NFL.
There are obvious questions whether Cousins is capable of getting the Vikings to a Super Bowl and there’s uncertainty surrounding the future of his star WR Justin Jefferson. Still, the emergence of rookie WR Jordan Addison should give the Vikings hope even if they move on from one of the top WRs in the NFL and Cousins has never struggled to get the ball to a variety of pass catchers throughout his career.
After suffering the Achilles injury in the middle of the 2023 campaign, several NFL Insiders made it clear the Vikings plan to sign Cousins to an extension, but there has been a ton of speculation he may hit the open market and could end up elsewhere.
“Though his future is unclear, conversations I have had with sources over the last few months always suggest Minnesota will try to bring him back and that there are many in the building and locker room who want that,” NFL Insider Dianna Russini reported shortly after it was announced Cousins was out for the rest of the 2023 campaign.
NFL Network’s Ian Rapoport reiterated Russini’s report: “The Vikings, who will start rookie Jaren Hall today against the Falcons, could still select a quarterback in the 2024 draft. But that move could be coupled with a Cousins return, sources say.”
Former Minnesota Vikings Player Shreds Kirk Cousins For In-Season Decision
Former Vikings offensive lineman Alex Boone didn’t mince words when discussing Cousins’ structured practice schedule.
As seen on the Netflix “Quarterback” series, Cousins stated that he takes Tuesdays off during the season to spend time with his family. Boone, who spent one season with the Vikings in 2016, did not take that admission from Cousins well.
Speaking on the latest edition of “The Oline Committee” podcast (h/t Jonathan Harrison of Sports Illustrated), Boone stated that he was “offended” by Cousins’ admission to taking every Tuesday off.
Not only that, but Boone opined that Cousins’ teammates were probably unhappy with that statement as well:
“It just starts over every Monday. A whole new hundred-hour work week, all over. No matter how you feel or what you feel. And when the quarterback of the team comes out and is like, ‘Well, I take Tuesdays off because I need personal time,’ I was really offended when he said that. I think everybody on the team was probably like, ‘this is bull s***.’”
Former #Vikings OL Alex Boone on Kirk Cousins taking Tuesdays off:
"I was really offended when he said that. I think everybody on the team was probably like, This is bulls***.”
(@OLineCommittee) pic.twitter.com/LcTAnJtnUk
— VikingzFanPage (@vikingzfanpage) February 21, 2024
First of all, this feels like an odd take from a guy who played one season for the Minnesota Vikings. Kirk Cousins comes off as one of the most likable teammates in the NFL and there have been absolutely no reports anyone within the organization had an issue with his unique routine.
Cousins’ decision to take Tuesdays off clearly hasn’t affected his playing ability. From 2015 to 2022, he reached 4,000 passing yards in all but one season (2019) and threw at least 25 touchdown passes every year. Before the Achilles injury, he was on pace for his best year as a NFL QB.
If anything, Kirk Cousins should probably keep doing what he’s been doing as it’s obviously working.