Packers Are about to Go the “Kirk Cousins Route”
Training Camp kicks off this week for franchises across the NFL, and for the Minnesota Vikings top rival, they’ll be without a starting quarterback. Jordan Love wants to get paid after showing signs of development in the last half of a season. And by paid, that means Kirk Cousins paid.
Packers Are about to Go the “Kirk Cousins Route”
Green Bay Packers general manager Brian Gutekunst addressed the media and said that Love would not be practicing until a new deal had been hammered out. He believes the sides are close, and the quarterback is attending meetings, but this is all just the beginning.
As things stand currently, the Detroit Lions are seen as the cream of the NFC North crop. Love signing a long-term extension doesn’t change that, and a very possible outcome is that he sets the Packers further back. When Green Bay drafted L, that ate up a bunch of his rookie contract as he sat behind Aaron Rodgers. Now, paying him before he’s truly established leaves the risk entirely on the organization.
In no world is Jordan Love a top-ten quarterback across the NFL, and it’s even less likely that he’s capable of rising above the warts of a roster to win a Super Bowl. At something like $300 million, and the cap hit that will come with such a number, it’s exactly what he must do, however.
Of course, the Vikings have watched this scenario play out with veteran Kirk Cousins over recent seasons. He constantly chased the bag and, despite better offensive weapons than Green Bat employs, was tasked continuously with overcoming a mediocre-at-best defense. It’s questionable if Love is even at Cousins’ level to this point, but the franchise won’t have an opportunity to wait and see.
In recent seasons, the Vikings have experienced the cap hell that is gaudy quarterback contracts. The Packers drafted a guy to avoid it, but then they waited too long to find out and are going to learn on the run anyway. Maybe Love continues to take substantial steps forward, and it all works out.
Then again, if it doesn’t, no Vikings fans will feel sorry for them.
Ted Schwerzler is a blogger from the Twin Cities that is focused on all things Minnesota Twins and Minnesota Vikings. He’s active on Twitter and writes weekly for Twins Daily. As a former college athlete and avid sports fan, covering our pro teams with a passion has always seemed like such a natural outlet.
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