Why the Vikings should wait on a Kirk Cousins extension

Minnesota’s salary cap

Any potential extension for Kirk Cousins could cause an enormous chain reaction to the Vikings’ salary cap this year.

This is something that would likely be far from welcome at this particular period. Minnesota is going to have to make some difficult decisions regarding some of their highly paid veterans in the coming weeks to ease their current cap concerns.

The Vikings are just around $1 million under the salary cap currently and with so many potential holes to fill on defense, a new deal for Cousins is not something that is probably going to be high on their agenda.

Cousins is set to count a whopping $31 million against Minnesota’s salary cap this season. It is unlikely that the quarterback is going to take less money with a playoff win now under his belt and a “wait and see” approach from the Vikings front office might be beneficial.

This would allow Minnesota to allocate any funds they free up for areas that are actually in need of help right now. The Vikings secondary and interior offensive line are in need of a complete makeover this offseason due to under-performance in 2019 and players entering free agency this year.

Cousins will be fully aware of this and know that giving him such a big financial commitment might not be what is best for Minnesota heading into the 2020 season. If he wants a good supporting cast around him, he is probably going to have to wait until more money is available.