Vikings Brass Announce Plan for QB in 2024
The Minnesota Vikings want Kirk Cousins back in 2024, but the price must be right.
That was the primary takeaway from the team’s end-of-season press conference Wednesday that also formally kickstarted the offseason.
Vikings Brass Announce Plan for QB in 2024
“Yeah. I’ve been pretty consistent with that. Kirk, the player, is somebody that, as we saw what he does to this team, I thought we were playing really good football before he got injured. It’s the most important position in sports,” general manager Kwesi Adofo-Mensah told reporters when asked about retaining Cousins in 2024.
Cousins is tentatively scheduled to hit free agency in March, and if no extension is finalized, he could sign anywhere in the NFL as early as March 13th. “Legal tampering” in free agency starts on March 11th.
Adofo-Mensah added, “It ultimately always comes down to can you find an agreement that works for both sides and all those things, but as a player it’s certainly my intention to have him back here.”
He also mentioned his job is to “protect” the Vikings, seemingly insinuating a price tag too high or with too much guaranteed money could, in theory, prevent a Cousins reunion.
Cousins was on pace for 5,000 passing yards, 38 touchdowns, and 13 interceptions before tearing his Achilles tendon in late October at Lambeau Field. Without Cousins, Minnesota finished 3-6 in the final nine games and missed the postseason in head coach Kevin O’Connell’s second season.
Immediately after the injury, O’Connell told reporters, “Kirk Cousins is going to be healthy again. I know he’s going to be a free agent after this season, but Kirk knows how I feel about him, and that will be something, you know, that hopefully will work itself out.”
“You guys know how I feel about Kirk. Kirk knows how I feel about Kirk. I think he was playing as well as anybody in the National Football League,” he added.
If the Vikings do not bring Cousins back for a seventh season, they’re essentially required to draft a quarterback with their 11th overall pick in April. The franchise’s 7-10 record secured the advantageous spot, and some believe, now more than ever, Minnesota must draft a quarterback for the future. Because if not now, with Adofo-Mensah and O’Connell entering Year No. 3, then when?
Caleb Williams (USC), Drake Maye (North Carolina), Jayden Daniels (LSU), Michael Penix Jr. (Washington), J.J. McCarthy (Michigan), and Bo Nix (Oregon) are the quarterbacks expected to go off the board in Round 1 during the upcoming draft. The Vikings could be in the mix for one, especially if Cousins and the Vikings part ways.
“I would love to be back in Minnesota. Hopefully, we can make that happen,” Cousins told ESPN’s Adam Schefter in December.
Cousins’ open market value should hit between $40-$50 million per season, although some fans and Vikings-themed media continue to believe he’ll return to Minnesota at a “discount.”
Ex-Vikings RB Ends Up with Panthers
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.
You must be logged in to post a comment.