5 Bold Predictions: Vikings vs. Seahawks – Week 13

Cousins will continue to stay hot

Another key difference between this year and last has been the play of Kirk Cousins, who was in full shell shock mode during his last trip to Seattle. A lot of that has to do with an offense that matches his strengths and an offensive line that has improved greatly, especially in pass protection.

According to Pro Football Focus, the Vikings offensive line has provided Cousins the second most time to attempt a pass at 2.80 seconds per dropback. That’s the second-best time in the league among quarterbacks that have started half their team’s games behind Jacksonville’s Gardner Minshew. By comparison, the brutal offensive line of the Vikings only afforded Cousins 2.54 seconds to throw last season, which ranked 14th in the NFL.

Three-tenths of a second may not seem like much, but against the Seahawks, Cousins barely had time to think before attempting a pass. That resulted in a 6.3 yards per attempt against the Seahawks last year. With the improvement, Cousins has been able to take shots and he has recorded a 9.5 yards per attempt clip for the season and 10.57 yards per attempt over his past seven games, which has included an 18-to-1 touchdown-to-interception ratio.

Those numbers should come in handy with a Seattle defense that ranks 29th in passing yards allowed and 28th in sacks after trading away Frank Clark, who destroyed the Vikings last year. With Cousins being one of the biggest reasons for Minnesota’s improvement, he should stay hot against the Seahawks.