Kirk Cousins Return To Minnesota Overshadowed By Sam Darnold

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It started out as the Kirk Cousins return game, complete with boos for the former Minnesota Vikings quarterback during introductions of his first game back in Minneapolis. 

But by the time it was over, it had turned into the Sam Darnold bank roll game. It had become a game in which the Vikings quarterback was so good, that everyone is wondering what team is going to pay a mint to sign Darnold next offseason.

Kirk Cousins Too Many Interceptions, No TDs

And Cousins?

An afterthought.

A non-factor, really. 

These are rough times for Cousins. He threw two more interceptions this game. He’s now thrown 8 interceptions the past four games.

He threw two more this game against his former team.

And in those four games Cousins has thrown zero touchdown passes, his team has lost all four games.

This, of course, raises whether the Falcons are close to benching Cousins, the quarterback they signed to a $180 million contract in March? The Falcons, after all, have first-round pick Michael Penix Jr. sitting on the bench and available.

Coach Raheem Morris has been adamant in recent weeks as Cousins slumped that a change was not going to happen.

After Sunday’s game the question got louder. But the answer seemingly is the same.

Cousins Apparently Still Starts

“Everything is always discussed when you go watch the tape and do all these other things, but Kirk Cousins is our quarterback,” Morris said after the loss. “Kirk played significantly better than he did the week before. We have a chance to go out there focus on us and get a chance to focus on what we do and what we do well.

“We’ll do whatever is best to win football games and Kirk is definitely a part of that.”

And as the Falcons are managing a terrible situation with their quarterback, the Vikings are about to manage a similar problematic situation – but a wonderful, awesome problematic situation.

Sam Darnold, you see, is on fire.

He threw five touchdown passes against the Falcons. Five!

He did not throw an interception. So, he’s continuing a season in which he’s already thrown 28 TD passes to a modest 10 interceptions. 

To understand how stunning this season has been for Darnold consider that he’d thrown 27 touchdown passes in his four previous seasons. Combined.

The Vikings, with Darnold as their starting quarterback, are 11-2 and only one game behind the Super Bowl contending Detroit Lions.

You know what that makes the Vikings?

Super Bowl contenders, too.

Darnold Price Climbing

And that begs the question what the Vikings should do with Darnold. OutKick addressed this question weeks ago. Personnel people in September told OutKick the Vikings should be engaging Darnold on a contract extension.

That, of course, is because Darnold is on a one-year contract.

But the Vikings didn’t take the advice. They have not had any significant contract talks with Darnold representatives about an extension, per a source. 

So they are rushing headlong into a postseason with a quarterback on an expiring contract that may walk away in the offseason. The Vikings have only one quarterback on the roster for 2025 and that is injured rookie J.J. McCarthy.

“Sam Darnold,” Vikings coach Kevin O’Connell said, “continues to play at a massively high level that is just fun to watch.”