Vikings insider quietly revives Kirk Cousins return talk (again)

The Minnesota Vikings clearly entered the offseason somewhere in the market for a veteran quarterback, ultimately (and obviously) to back up J.J. McCarthy. Viable free agent options dried up rather quickly, and they eventually acquired Sam Howell from the Seattle Seahawks on Day 3 of the draft.

Even with the faint idea of Brett Rypien as genuine competition, Howell is the automatic favorite to be the Vikings' No. 2 quarterback this season. He would have to be absolutely awful, or be injured, during training camp and preseason action to lose the job.

There is a scenario where Howell does not impress in training camp, which would open the door to other options. The idea of Rypien as the direct backup to McCarthy, one snap away from having to play if McCarthy went down, is not appealing to anyone.

Minnesota Vikings insider sort of keeps door open to reunion with Kirk Cousins

Back in March, NFL Network's Daniel Jeremiah offered up an interesting idea for the Vikings to address their backup quarterback situation on the "40s and Free Agents" podcast.

“If, let’s say, Sam Darnold leaves, Sam Darnold goes to the Steelers right – so he’s gone. If you’re Minnesota – and here’s the options, right? You have JJ, you’re hoping he’s going to be the guy, but you need a veteran there. You have Daniel Jones who’s been on your team last year; you have Kirk Cousins...is available to come back, as – you know – buying you a little more time with JJ McCarthy. Would you rather have Daniel Jones with what he’s going to cost, which I would have to believe is a lot more than what Kirk Cousins, because of the Falcons and the way that contract was situated. You could get Kirk Cousins back in Minnesota for next to nothing."

As veterans with lots of starting experience go, Cousins bring a far different dynamic than Aaron Rodgers would've. He also knows Kevin O'Connell's offense.

In early April, Ben Goessling of the Minnesota Star Tribune mentioned Cousins as a possible (if unlikely) QB2 option for the Vikings.

"They could also pursue a trade for a veteran backup: possibly even Kirk Cousins, who lost his starting job with the Falcons and is believed to want out of Atlanta after just one season there....while the quarterback would have to waive his no-trade clause, a source familiar with his thinking said earlier this month he might be interested in a return to the Vikings.”

Cousins has made it clear he wants to go somewhere he can start. Those options, barring a significant injury during training camp or preseason games, are dried up until the season starts. An in-season injury or two would create options between Week 1 and the trade deadline, but he'd have to waive his no-trade clause.

"There aren’t an abundance of alternatives. If the Vikings soured on Howell, they could try to sway longtime starter Ryan Tannehill. Plucking Kirk Cousins from the Falcons is another break-glass-in-case-of-emergency possibility...."

If it came to it, the Vikings might be the only exception to the desire Cousins has to be traded to a team where he would be installed as the starter. The parting of ways was not contentious; it was just time for both sides.

Cousins coming back to the Vikings as McCarthy's backup remains very unlikely. He, and the Falcons, are better off waiting for a situation where a team has to replace its starting quarterback. But the idea of a reunion keeps surfacing just enough to believe there might be something to it, even if it'll take some very specific circumstances to make it happen.