Minnesota Vikings quarterback Kirk Cousins earned his paycheck in Week 3, but his consistency against tougher competition still needs to improve.
Thanks to an insanely dumb decision by Detroit Lions head coach Dan Campbell, Kirk Cousins and the Minnesota Vikings were given a chance to come out of their Week 3 matchup with a win. There was only 1:10 left on the clock in the fourth quarter as the Vikings’ offense took the field, but that was apparently all the time they needed.
After Cousins got Minnesota into field-goal range with a 28-yard completion to wide receiver K.J. Osborn, the team could have just run the clock out to see if Greg Joseph could kick them into overtime. But Osborn and Cousins had other plans.
The Vikings quarterback and Osborn connected on another 28-yard completion on the very next play, but this time, it resulted in six points and a lead over the Lions.
Leading the Minnesota Vikings to a comeback win over the Detroit Lions is a small step in the right direction for Kirk Cousins
Thanks to their defense coming up with an interception in the final seconds of the contest, Minnesota was able to leave the field in Week 3 with a victory over the Lions. Something that didn’t seem possible when the Vikings were trailing by double digits multiple times in the matchup.
After the game, Cousins was praised for his ability to maintain his composure and lead Minnesota to a win, despite playing poorly for the majority of the day.
But this was what he was supposed to do. Sunday’s comeback against Detroit is what should be expected from Cousins.
So sure, give him a thumbs up and even a slow clap if you want for helping lead the Vikings to a win in Week 3, but we still need to see him deliver as he did against the Lions on a more consistent basis. Do it again, do it in a game after throwing three interceptions, do it in primetime, do it on the road against a championship contender, and then after that, do it again.
These comeback victories are enjoyable and fun to look back on, but they shouldn’t be treated as rare occurrences during the season.
This won’t be the only time this year where Minnesota needs Cousins to lead them to a comeback. There will be more opportunities, and if he wants to be the quarterback who can lead the Vikings to a championship, then he needs to prove that this past Sunday against the Lions was only the beginning of a new-and-improved version of himself who can no longer be counted out when trailing.
The Vikings’ new regime kept the Cousins around this year because they feel he gives them the best chance to win in 2022. If he can lead Minnesota to more come-from-behind victories when they need him to this season, then there’s a good chance that he’ll get to help them win games beyond 2022 as well.