For a number of hours at some point again within the first week of March, there was a window the place the Minnesota Vikings and Kirk Cousins anticipated to remain collectively.
Ultimately, trepidation on Cousins’ behalf turned the road chilly.
The Vikings made the error of displaying their playing cards to a 35-year-old rehabbing a restore of his ruptured Achilles. Minnesota was clear in withholding oodles of assured cash that its plan was to take a position considered one of two first-round draft picks in a quarterback (enter JJ McCarthy).
Cousins glared again with a disapproving facet smirk and packed for an additional new starting in Atlanta, the third workforce to pay top-of-market prices, with fingers crossed he might discover his legs and possibly even present up for a playoff recreation.
He defined in March how he got here to rationalize leaving the Vikings in what now hits like a comedy routine crafted in Minnesota. Good irony.
“I believe in Minnesota it was trending over the past couple offseasons to being considerably year-to-year. As we talked with Atlanta, it felt like this was a spot the place if I play on the stage I anticipate to play, that I can retire a Falcon,” Cousins stated after taking residence greater than $180 million from Minnesota for the 2018-2023 seasons.
(The following graph is finest learn in your finest voice impression of Dateline’s Keith Morrison)
With out sharing their plans, the Falcons dropped the pen at Cousins’ signing—4 years, $180 million—and started scrawling scouting studies on the 2024 draft’s high quarterbacks. Six weeks later, unbeknownst to Cousins, Atlanta invested the No. 8 decide within the draft on Washington quarterback Michael Penix Jr. That Cousins smirk now gritted enamel, the Falcons took Penix two spots forward of the Vikings’ number of McCarthy.
To understand the context of all of it, rewind to Cousins getting into the league as a fourth-round decide in the identical draft the then-Redskins chosen Robert Griffin III 100 picks earlier as the long run face of the franchise. A quick pause for foreshadowing and historical past wrapped collectively: It was offensive assistant Kyle Shanahan in Washington who felt Cousins was too wealthy of a worth to go up at decide 102. Then head coach Mike Shanahan recalled telling Cousins to arrange each day like he’s the starter, as a result of that actuality is one or two performs away.
Cousins battled to win the beginning job in 2014 however was on a brief leash till he started the 2015 season because the QB1 in Washington. His trademark second got here in a rally to beat the Buccaneers after falling behind 24-0, then celebrating along with his much-repeated “You want that?!?” concourse outburst.
The season ended with Cousins dropping a fumble and being sacked six instances by the Packers within the wild-card spherical.
That arrange the franchise tag staredown with Washington, which didn’t wish to threat dropping Cousins to a “poison tablet” contract provide and hit him with the unique tag. On the time, the $20 million value per season was greater than 22 % of the wage cap. He was given the unique tag once more in 2017 regardless of not making the playoffs in 2016. Washington went 7-9, and Cousins went to Minnesota in March 2018 on the richest contract in NFL historical past, a completely assured $84 million deal by means of the 2020 season.
In 2018, with the playoffs on the road within the ultimate week of the common season towards the Bears, Cousins handed for 132 yards and the Vikings misplaced 24-10.
In 2019, Cousins had 26 touchdowns and 6 picks and pushed the Vikings to the wild-card playoffs and a win over the Saints earlier than a blowout at San Francisco (27-10) ended Minnesota’s season.
The Vikings opted to re-up with Cousins on a two-year, $66 million deal in March 2020, and he made just one extra playoff begin—a 2022 residence loss to the sixth-seeded New York Giants.
Cousins had vibrant moments and 7 wins in his ongoing tenure with the Falcons with 509 yards and 4 touchdowns in a win over division-leading Tampa Bay six days after main a game-winning drive to beat the Eagles 22-21. A U-turn from a 6-3 begin was his undoing. Cousins went 4 consecutive video games with no landing, all losses, earlier than a TD go helped Atlanta beat the 2-12 Raiders on Monday by a 15-9 rely.
Head coach Raheem Morris formally moved Cousins to the bench and named Penix because the QB1 for Week 16 on Sunday. Even from the bench, Cousins is assured $62.5 million this season and $27.5 million in 2025. He turns 37 in August.
Earlier than that, when Cousins’ $10 million roster bonus is due in March, he’ll nearly assuredly be again available on the market—maybe a reunion with Shanahan or in a mea culpa return as McCarthy’s backup in Minnesota—chasing his second profession playoff win whereas rolling previous $300 million in lifetime NFL earnings.
Last chapters not often go as scripted within the NFL.
That’s to not say Cousins received’t have another alternative to prod the general public with, You Like That?!?
It’s price noting Penix didn’t arrive within the NFL with something near a clear medical historical past. Earlier than taking Washington to the nationwide title recreation in January, Penix’s street to Atlanta was pocked with season-ending accidents in 2018 (ACL), 2019 (clavicle), 2020 (ACL) and 2021 (AC joint).
The closing schedule offers Atlanta sufficient of an angle that the playoffs might be a actuality. The schedule serves up the NFL’s different 2-12 groups, the NY Giants, at residence in Penix’s first profession begin on Sunday earlier than—good day, soccer scriptwriters!—what shapes up as a wildcard spot recreation in primetime (Cousins is 14-21 after successful Monday) towards … Washington in Week 17.
Win that recreation, and Atlanta would wish solely a win at residence on Jan. 5 towards the Carolina Panthers (3-11) to earn a playoff spot.
In a league thriving on plot twists, might Cousins play a paid position?
He’ll have loads of time to consider what might need been in Minnesota, the place a number of hours in March paved the trail for the resurrection of Sam Darnold and this sad ending in Atlanta.
