Kirk Cousins’ Best Team Fit Is … Not the Vikings.
With free agency right around the corner, general manager Kwesi Adofo-Mensah must answer the major questions in the Vikings’ universe. Skol Nation is anticipating the decision at the essential quarterback position as Kirk Cousins is scheduled to hit free agency after throwing the passes in Minnesota for six seasons.
Kirk Cousins’ Best Team Fit Is … Not the Vikings.
The decision will change how the franchise is perceived in the upcoming season by its fans and those around the league. Moving on toward a rookie signal-caller would surely give off the impression of a rebuilding team, as first-year QBs are rarely good enough to carry a team into the postseason. Keeping him, on the other hand, would lead to higher expectations. Reaching the playoffs is a must if Cousins is brought back for year seven.
In recent years, the Vikings built their offense around Cousins’ skill set, leading to a fabulous 2023 campaign. With weapons all over the field and an offensive-minded play-caller, it is still a great spot for Cousins to spend the next few years.
But ESPN’s Matt Bowen is convinced the Atlanta Falcons are actually his best fit in free agency:
The Vikings should be in the mix to re-sign Cousins, but I think he fits really well with Atlanta under new offensive coordinator Zac Robinson (who worked under Sean McVay in Los Angeles). It works well for Cousins in both the play-action and dropback passing game. Before tearing his right Achilles in Week 8, Cousins was completing 69.5% of his throws and had 18 touchdown passes to five interceptions. He would be an upgrade under center for an Atlanta offense that has plenty of young offensive skill talent in Drake London, Kyle Pitts and Bijan Robinson.
Matt Bowen, ESPN
The Falcons are indeed viewed as a great spot for him for various reasons. They have a solid team that managed to win seven games in each of the last three seasons without a capable quarterback. Because of the “a quarterback away” approach, Cousins should be their main target to replace the carousel of Taylor Heinicke and Desmond Ridder under the new coaching staff.
That staff under head coach Raheem Morris includes offensive coordinator Zac Robinson. Like every OC, Robinson will call some things differently than Kevin O’Connell, but it would undoubtedly be close enough to prevent a steep learning curve as another former Rams coach.
Similar to Minnesota, Atlanta has some outstanding weapons. Throwing the ball to Kyle Pitts and Drake London and having one of the better running games in the league with a superb running back room makes the offense attractive for a quarterback. Another wrinkle is that Cousins’ wife Julie is from Atlanta.
Minnesota has the advantage of talking to Cousins and his camp before free agency opens. However, it is an open secret that the tampering rules are broken at the draft combine. Mike Florio recently stated that he thinks the Vikings should re-sign him before next week’s combine to prevent those talks.
That timeline is unrealistic. General manager Adofo-Mensah should try to re-sign him before the new league year arrives, though, because his void years would hit the books if he’s not under contract at that point.
It is a total mystery how the situation unfolds, but it will be resolved in the next three weeks one way or another.
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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