Nov 24, 2022; Minneapolis, Minnesota, USA; Minnesota Vikings quarterback Kirk Cousins (8) celebrates the win after the game against the New England Patriots at U.S. Bank Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Matt Krohn-USA TODAY Sports.
For much of the season, Kirk Cousins has seen his counting statistics take a dip. It has come with the caveat that he continues leading game-winning drives and Minnesota has already clinched their position in the playoffs. Because of that, the normal Cousins haters have come to the bright side due to the Vikings QB’s clutch performances.
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However, over the past two weeks, Cousins has passed for 885 yards, bringing his total for the year to a much more respectable 3818, sixth in the NFL. Meanwhile, his passing touchdowns have climbed to 24, ranking fifth. Because of these past two weeks, Kirk Cousins is nearing an historic TD mark.
Coming into Week 16 against the New York Giants, Cousins has now thrown for 247 touchdowns in his 11-year career. He is currently three shy of 250, and when he surpasses that number, he will be just the 24th quarterback in NFL history to eclipse that mark, per Stathead. Immediately ahead of him on the NFL’s all-time list will be the following five players:
By surpassing that 250-mark, Cousins officially enters territory with some of the greatest QBs in NFL history. There’s a very realistic chance that, assuming the Vikings QB1 won’t retire at the end of 2022, he could enter the top-20 as well as pass Joe Montana during the 2023 season.
Montana earned his 273 passing touchdowns over the course of 15 seasons (he missed the 1991 season with an elbow injury). If Cousins completes the task in 2023, it will have taken him just 12 years. Granted, it’s a much more pass-friendly league now than it was in Montana’s time, but still, it would be an impressive feat.
Assuming Cousins accomplishes his 250th passing touchdown in the next couple weeks, he would become the 13th player in NFL history to do it within his first 11 NFL seasons. Cousins would also become just the sixth active QB with that many on his resume, joining the following players:
All five of these players also accomplished the feat in their first 11 seasons, with Wilson topping the list at 303. Rodgers and Stafford narrowly snuck into this group with 257 and 256 passing touchdowns, respectively, in their first 11 years of NFL play.
Of course, these counting stats have become much easier to accrue as the league rules become more and more friendly to the passing game. That being said, there’s a reason that only five other active players have managed to reach this total: it’s still difficult to do, and it requires a QB that remains on the field.
Cousins is the definition of an ironman in the NFL as he’s never missed a game due to injury. He sat out Week 17 in 2019 because the Vikings had already clinched the playoffs, and he missed a game in 2021 due to COVID. However, the long-term health of the Vikings QB has never been a concern, and that is what has him on the precipice of this milestone.
Josh Frey is a Class of 2020 graduate of The College of Idaho with a bachelor’s degree in Creative Writing. He also earned minors in History, Human Biology, and Journalism. When he’s not writing about the NFL, Josh enjoys marathon training, playing video games, or rooting for the Milwaukee Brewers and Bucks. For more of his opinions, check out his Twitter account: @Freyed_Chicken.