4 reasons why Kirk Cousins is (probably) just a clone of Alex Smith

Both have been very good and also very bad

Vikings fans have seen Kirk Cousins deliver some very impressive performances since he joined the team in 2018. This season, alone, Cousins has had three games with three touchdown tosses and at least 320 passing yards.

However, Minnesota’s fan base has certainly seen their quarterback have some forgettable days on the field as well.

In a Week 2 matchup against the Indianapolis Colts last year, he posted a 15.9 passer rating after completing just 42.3 percent of his throws for 113 yards, no touchdowns, and three interceptions. And earlier this season, Cousins completed 52.6 percent of his passes for 203 yards, one touchdown, and one interception to finish with a 66.0 passer rating in a Week 4 loss to the Cleveland Browns.

Like Cousins, Alex Smith had plenty of instances in his career where he lit up the stat sheet and looked like one of the top passers in the league. But then Smith also had a number of games where he played like absolute garbage.

Back in Week 5 of the 2012 season when he was a member of the San Francisco 49ers, Smith finished a matchup against the Buffalo Bills with a perfect 156.2 passer rating after completing 75 percent of his throws for 303 yards, three touchdowns, and no interceptions. Then, to follow up that performance, Smith went out and posted a 43.1 passer rating in the 49ers’ very next game after he completed 63.3 percent of his passes for 200 yards, no touchdowns, and three interceptions.

Both quarterbacks have tended to have more good performances than bad in their pro careers. But both have also shown that things can get out of hand on the field rather quickly.