Vikings Will See 3 Old Friends vs. Falcons
The Minnesota Vikings are six-point favorites to topple the Atlanta Falcons this weekend, looking to extend a current winning streak to six games.
Vikings Will See 3 Old Friends vs. Falcons
The purple team has a 10-2 record through 13 weeks, and impressively, is knocking on the door of the postseason.
And when Minnesota takes on Atlanta this Sunday, a few former Vikings will square off versus their old team.
1. Kirk Cousins (QB)
Stint with Vikings:
2018-2023
88 Games Played
Cousins is all the rage this week, and the 36-year-old returns to the building where he manned QB1 duties for six seasons.
The veteran passer has never played as a guest at U.S. Bank Stadium. Cousins talked to reporters on Wednesday and seemed to acknowledge that the boos would be on the agenda. “They’re great fans, they’re great football fans. I would think, as a result, they would make it as hostile as they can for us. It’s a great fan base,” Cousins said about Minnesotans and his expectations for Week 14.
“I had been to the Washington stadium many, many times, but I’d never been to it in that way. I kind of felt like a rookie in that sense. That’ll have the same feeling, I assume, on Sunday where it’s — I’ve been here many times, but in this way, this is the first … But at the end of the day, you’re there to go play a football game and go play your best and win, and that’s where your focus is, ultimately,” Cousins continued.
Sam Darnold will lead the Vikings at QB1 against Atlanta, and through 12 games, he’s outplayed Cousins in Atlanta — at a price tag $30 million cheaper than Cousins’.
Cousins concluded, “We got to get back on the right track, and the best thing we can do is get another game here, so I would love to play Wednesday, really, with how much you want to get back out there and get this taste out of your mouth. That’s what we’re chasing for on Sunday is a much better outing, and they’re not going to give it to us, I know that.”
2. Mike Hughes (CB)
Stint with Vikings:
2018-2020
24 Games Played
Once upon a time, the Vikings spent a 1st-Round pick on Hughes — the 2018 NFL Draft — and he was on tap as the club’s long-term CB solution after Xavier Rhodes and Trae Waynes theoretically slowed down.
But injuries sullied Hughes’ career in the Twin Cities, and before the start of the 2021 campaign, former general manager Rick Spielman shipped him to the Kansas City Chiefs for a late-round draft pick.
Hughes then bounced around the NFL and recently latched onto the Falcons’ roster. He has a 71.5 Pro Football Focus grade in 2024 — pretty noteworthy.
It’s also worth noting that Hughes is questionable for Sunday’s game, and his status will be determined the morning of.
3. Storm Norton (OT)
Stint with Vikings:
2018
1 Game Played
Norton was the type of player who signed an undrafted rookie free agent contact with Minnesota and spent a little time on the practice squad.
He didn’t stick around long but found staying power in the NFL after departing Minnesota. Norton is the RT2 on Atlanta’s roster.
Dustin Baker is a political scientist who graduated from the University of Minnesota in 2007. Subscribe to his daily YouTube Channel, VikesNow. The show features guests, analysis, and opinion on all things related to the purple team, with 4-7 episodes per week. His Vikings obsession dates back to 1996. Listed guilty pleasures: Peanut Butter Ice Cream, ‘The Sopranos,’ Basset Hounds, and The Doors (the band). He follows the NBA as closely as the NFL.
All statistics provided by Pro Football Reference / Stathead; all contractual information provided by OverTheCap.com.
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