4 reasons the Vikings remain in win-now mode under new regime
By Dean Jones
Vikings avoided the Cousins trade temptation
It’s been an offseason like no other when it comes to quarterback movement. The league has been littered with bombshell trades involving some of the biggest names in the business, leaving the NFL looking much different right now than it did at the end of the 2021 season.
The Minnesota Vikings were not exempt from trade rumors themselves. There was big talk of quarterback Kirk Cousins being moved for draft capital heading into the final year of his deal, with the Carolina Panthers reportedly calling to acquire about the signal-caller’s availability at one stage.
Nothing concrete came from this and the Vikings opted to hold firm and hand Cousins a new deal, giving them some salary-cap relief this spring. Although the move was not well received by some, it represented the most sense for Minnesota if they want to make their presence felt in Year 1 of Kevin O’Connel’s reign.
Cousins is statistically very good and did play well more often than not last season. However, it’s apparent that the Vikings are only going to get so far with the former Michigan State product, which might be all O’Connell is looking for given that Minnesota hasn’t made the playoffs over the last two seasons.
It’s unlikely that Cousins will be given another contract after this one. This could lead the Vikings to trade the player next year or draft his successor from a strong quarterback class in 2023 in pursuit of finding themselves a long-term solution.