Kirk Cousins Enjoys the New Guy’s Presence
Another week, another average Minnesota Vikings game. All four contests had some similarities. Early turnovers put the team in a hole; they have to attempt a comeback win, and at the end of the day, it is a one-score game. Kevin O’Connell’s squad just finds ways to sabotage themselves. Regardless, the Vikings rallied behind a Harrison Smith masterclass and pulled off the first victory of the season, sparking some optimism.
Kirk Cousins Enjoys the New Guy’s Presence
The game was sloppy, especially on offense. A pick-six early in the game led to a 10-point deficit. Minnesota had to overcome adversity, most of it self-inflicted. To do that, it is important to stay positive. When the Vikings were down 33-0 last season, Patrick Peterson famously claimed that five touchdowns were all the team needed, and he was right.
This time, new running back Cam Akers received praise from Kirk Cousins as the group’s hype man. He spoke to the media about his new teammate:
He was great. He was hilarious. He’s in the locker room talking to himself like ‘Come on, Cam, you got this.’ He was just really good for morale. And then he gets in the game, I have never played with him, just practice, and he’s in the huddle and doing the same thing. I call a run and he’s like ‘you got this, Cam’ and it was awesome. This guy is really good for morale. And then we called a pass and he did it again ‘We got this,’ so anyways, I really appreciate his morale.
Sometimes you are in a fight and it’s a heavyweighty deal and when Cam was in there it was like ‘I like this guy, he’s bringing good energy to our huddle and to the line of scrimmage.’ I can roll with this. That was awesome.
Kirk Cousins
The Vikings faced many obstacles in the first three games and continued that trend in Week 4. They desperately needed something positive, and the emergence of a new player with an infectious personality was perfect for that.
But the new running back didn’t just have a good impact on the locker room; he also played well on the field, and the Panthers struggled to contain him. He rushed five times for 40 yards and added two catches for 11 yards, forming an effective duo in the backfield with Alexander Mattison.
Akers was a decent player for the most part in Los Angeles, even after suffering a torn Achilles, so it was a strange decision to move on from him. Nevertheless, the Vikings needed someone to spark the rushing attack, and Akers has been wonderful in that regard.
O’Connell’s offense was one-dimensional in the first two games of the season, rushing for only 69 yards total, but the running game is a serious facet of the offense now. It will be interesting to watch the storyline unfold if Akers takes a significant amount of Mattison’s load or if he continues to be his backup to give him a breather.
Next up are the Kansas City Chiefs. That franchise obviously employs Patrick Mahomes, the best player in all of football. He struggled on Sunday against the Jets, but Minnesota’s defense is still a shaky unit, although they made life hard for Bryce Young.
Mahomes will present more adversity. He will make some outstanding plays, and Akers and his teammates must stay positive and continue to chase the victory. At 1-3, not many mistakes are allowed going forward, and even the defending Super Bowl champions aren’t invincible.
Janik Eckardt is a football fan who likes numbers and stats. The Vikings became his favorite team despite their quarterback at the time, Christian Ponder. He is a walking soccer encyclopedia, loves watching sitcoms, and Classic rock is his music genre of choice. Follow him on Twitter if you like the Vikings: @JanikEckardt
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