Kirk Cousins: Highs and Lows from the 2019 NFL season

1. Low – Performance against the Green Bay Packers and Chicago Bears

Unfortunately for everybody involved — Cousins, the Vikings, fans, the front office — this is a big damn deal to struggle against Minnesota’s two primary foes, Green Bay and Chicago.

Cousins took on the Packers defense twice per tradition in 2019 and left these games with passer ratings of 52.9 in Week 2 and 58.8 in Week 16. For anybody — Cousins especially — these numbers are lackluster. In Week 2 at Lambeau Field, the Vikings got off to a rotten start and trailed 21-0 with about 45 minutes of real-time elapsed. Minnesota battled back admirably, was jobbed on a Dalvin Cook holding call, and the Packers prevailed 21-16.

As for Chicago, Cousins notched a 91.4 passer rating during a Week 4 festival of eye-rolls. That passer rating wildly supersedes the eye-test because Cousins did not play well. In fact, it was reportedly the game that caused wideout Stefon Diggs to go AWOL. Diggs was evidently peeved by his role in the offense and didn’t return to the team for a couple of days. He was fined, the ship was righted, the Vikings later won a playoff game, and then Diggs was traded away. How’s that for a gridiron soap opera?

In 2018, Cousins was masterful at Lambeau Field but has never been at his finest against the Bears.

No rest for the wicked as Cousins gets a crack at redemption four times versus these foes in 2020.