A year ago, Kirk Cousins was in the early stages of adjusting to his new home with the Atlanta Falcons after spending the previous six seasons as a member of the Minnesota Vikings. Now, after falling to the No. 2 spot on the Falcons' quarterback depth chart, Cousins is hoping to find a new team before the start of the 2025 season.
Some have wondered if the veteran signal-caller could even find his way back to the Vikings this year. But regardless of whether or not that actually happens, Sports Illustrated's Albert Breer shared on Monday that a decision about Cousins's future likely won't be made until after this year's NFL Draft at the end of April.
"Rather than taking anyone’s word for it, Cousins has already signaled to teams that he would likely want to wait to see what happens over draft weekend before accepting a trade. In a way, that should also work for the teams, allowing them to go through a full draft process—and make decisions on guys such as Colorado’s Shedeur Sanders and Ole Miss’s Jaxson Dart independent of Cousins’s destination.
...One thing I have heard Cousins’s camp would be amenable to is working out the particulars of a trade ahead of the draft, on the contingency that a team trading for him not take one in the first round. Of course, that would require working the money and compensation out ahead of time, and a lot can happen between now and the end of April."
Minnesota Vikings acquiring Kirk Cousins from the Atlanta Falcons would create unnecessary drama
It's possible that Minnesota could still be in need of an experienced No. 2 quarterback option after this year's NFL Draft and Cousins might be someone the team considers for the role.
But even if he's willing to return to the team as a backup, the Vikings should just continue to stay away from the last quarterback to lead the franchise to a playoff victory. Cousins's presence on its own would likely just create too much opportunity for a problem to arise in the future.
What if Minnesota brings back Cousins to be the team's No. 2 signal-caller and then J.J. McCarthy struggles in his first few games as the Vikings' starting quarterback next season? How long will it take until Minnesota fans are calling for the team to put Cousins back in the starting lineup?
Cousins hasn't been gone long enough for the entire Vikings fan base to be convinced that he's not the player that he once was even during his last appearance in a purple and gold uniform in 2023.
Even if it's a small percentage, some Minnesota fans would want Cousins to be the team's starter again if McCarthy struggles next season, and that's a scenario that the Vikings should make sure they completely avoid.
