Jeffrey Becker-USA TODAY Sports
One day after the Minnesota Vikings knocked off the Green Bay Packers for the first win of the post-Aaron Rodgers era, quarterback Kirk Cousins was formally diagnosed with a torn Achilles tendon and will miss the remainder of the 2023 season.
A few hours later, he greeted fans for a trick-or-treating event.
Grab your tissues; it’s true.
Vikings fan Blair Reynolds tweeted Monday night, “Kirk Cousins, my nephew met you tonight at the Halloween party. You could have stayed away, you could have said no to an autograph. No one would have blamed you after the day you have had. Thank you for showing him that despite all the bad you can rise above it.”
Here’s the full tweet:
The Vikings will embark on life after Cousins as early as now, with the trade deadline just hours away and fans unsure about the team’s next quarterback. Rookie Jaren Hall is tentatively expected to start on Sunday at the Atlanta Falcons, but head coach Kevin O’Connell was surprisingly noncommital about the situation Monday afternoon.
Cousins was on a total tear before the injury, leading the NFL in touchdown passes, second in passing yards, and third in passer rating. Minnesota started the season 1-4 and was left for dead without wide receiver Justin Jefferson, who was placed on injured reserve, but Cousins had other plans.
Cousins’ Vikings rattled off three consecutive wins, surviving the Chicago Bears at Soldier Field, stunning the San Francisco 49ers on Monday Night Football, and spanking the new-look Packers at Lambeau Field. But before the two-score win in Green Bay was complete, Cousins planted his foot wrong, and that was that for his Achilles’ tendon.
Here’s another fan tweet from the trick-or-treat event in Eagan:
Cousins didn’t have to do any of this, the pomp and circumstance of the Halloween event. The 35-year-old suffered a career-altering injury about 30 hours before, and no one would’ve lamented his absence in Eagan considering the adversity.
But Kirk is Kirko, so he did a Kirko thing.
The Vikings QB1 becomes a free agent in March, making the injury news from Week 8 all the more painful and impactful. Some speculated that was his last hurrah as the team’s quarterback, although it seems strange that the adventure would end on that note.
It’s also terribly poetic justice that the Vikings finally — after 5.5 years — handed Cousins an elite pass-protecting offensive line, and basically a week later, his season ended prematurely. Bad voodoo, indeed.
Yet, Cousins refused the woe-is-me attitude and did the thing for Halloween.
Typical Cousins.
Dustin Baker is a political scientist who graduated from the University of Minnesota in 2007. Subscribe to his daily YouTube Channel, VikesNow. He hosts a podcast with Bryant McKinnie, which airs every Wednesday with Raun Sawh and Sal Spice. His Vikings obsession dates back to 1996. Listed guilty pleasures: Peanut Butter Ice Cream, ‘The Sopranos,’ Basset Hounds, and The Doors (the band).
All statistics provided by Pro Football Reference / Stathead; all contractual information provided by OverTheCap.com.