Congratulations Vikings fans, we got one. Four weeks into the season the team earned their first win against the, now, 0-4 Carolina Panthers. It was not a pretty win. It took a DJ Wonnum defensive score to take the lead and eventually win the game. On the bright side, the defense looked solid and did what they needed to do against a struggling Panthers squad by holding their offense to six points. However, the offense failed to punish the Panthers’ defense and open the game up. Kirk Cousins had his worst game of the year, and yet the Vikings found their first win of the year.
Record-Setting Pace
After the first three games, Kirk Cousins was on pace for 6,092 passing yards and 51 passing touchdowns. That pace would blow away Peyton Manning’s record of 5,477 passing yards in a season. 51 passing touchdowns would place him second behind Peyton Manning’s record of 55 in one season. However, he was also on pace to go 0-17. So how can a team have MVP-caliber quarterback play and be winless? That, right there, is the Kirk Cousins experience. He manages to balance all of his ups and downs, god forbid this team is ever too good, but at least it is not completely awful.
Enter week four and Cousins put up a measly 139 yards, two touchdowns, and two interceptions. Granted Minnesota only threw the ball 19 times on Sunday, but Kirk posted his lowest QBR and passer ratings on the season, coupled with an ugly goal line pick-six on the first drive of the game. For a team plagued by turnovers this season, Sunday was not an indication that things are moving in the right direction (at least they did not lose a fumble). Week 4 proved that Cousins does not need to throw for over 300 yards to win a game, but it also does not mean that this type of performance will be enough to keep the Vikings out of the loss column. The Vikings play the Chiefs and 49ers over the next three weeks, Cousins must show up for those games.
So why did we win Kirk’s worst game and lose his MVP-caliber ones? Because the run game got hot. Mattison and Akers combined for 135 yards on 22 rushes. This is great news for a rushing attack that ranked in the bottom two going into Week 4. If the run game can keep up like this it will take pressure off Cousins and it should open up the pass game even more. The passing game is really good, we know that, however, if the run game takes off, it will elevate the passing game as well. This, unfortunately, largely hinges on the offensive line.
What’s Next for Kirk
Regardless of Week 4, Cousins has played like a top-10 quarterback at age 35. He could be in for the best year of his 12-year career due to Minnesota’s elite passing attack. He is inflating his value in a pass-happy offense in a contract year. Minnesota has signaled that they will likely be moving on from Cousins after this year, however, if the Vikings can turn the season around and experience postseason success with Cousins, he could earn himself a one or two-year contract with the Vikings. Otherwise, he will find himself on another team in 2024. While there has been talk about Cousins getting traded to the New York Jets to take over for Zach Wilson after Aaron Rodgers’ injury, I highly doubt the Jets make the move. The Falcons could be a sneaky landing spot for Cousins in 2024. The Falcons have talent all over the roster, they just need a quarterback good enough to capitalize on it and Cousins could be the perfect fit.
Another wrinkle in Kirk’s future with the Vikings is Jefferson’s relationship with Cousins. Keeping Jefferson happy is priority number one for the Vikings and if Cousins is the answer, the team might be pigeonholed into keeping Cousins. While I think it is unlikely that it comes down to that, it might be worth thinking about, if Kirk turns in a career year.
Cousins will always be appreciated in Minnesota no matter what happens the rest of the way. He brought stability to a position the Vikings had struggled with for years. I am very nervous about what is to come at the quarterback position for Minnesota. Rookies tend to struggle out of the gate and a flashy trade for a good quarterback seems unlikely. It has been nice knowing exactly what the Vikings have at quarterback with Kirk Cousins, but ultimately, it looks like it is time to move on.
