(Noah K. Murray-USA TODAY Sports)
The belle of the free agent ball opted to become a Minnesota Viking in large part because of their potential to reach the Super Bowl. The ex-Redskins signed for a reported $86 million over the next three years and the deal is fully guaranteed.
| Year | Team | Gms | Plays | Att | Comp | Pass Yards | Pass TDs | Int | Rush | Rush Yards | Rush TDs | Fum | Total Yards | Total TDs | 50+ Yd TDs | 300+ Yard Gms | 2+ TD Gms |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2012 | WAS | 3 | 51 | 48 | 33 | 466 | 4 | 3 | 3 | 22 | 0 | 0 | 488 | 4 | 0 | 1 | 1 |
| 2013 | WAS | 5 | 159 | 155 | 81 | 854 | 4 | 7 | 4 | 14 | 0 | 2 | 868 | 4 | 0 | 1 | 1 |
| 2014 | WAS | 6 | 211 | 204 | 126 | 1710 | 10 | 9 | 7 | 20 | 0 | 2 | 1730 | 10 | 0 | 2 | 4 |
| 2015 | WAS | 16 | 569 | 543 | 379 | 4166 | 29 | 11 | 26 | 48 | 5 | 3 | 4214 | 34 | 0 | 7 | 8 |
| 2016 | WAS | 16 | 640 | 606 | 406 | 4917 | 25 | 12 | 34 | 96 | 4 | 3 | 5013 | 29 | 0 | 7 | 11 |
| 2017 | WAS | 16 | 589 | 540 | 347 | 4093 | 27 | 13 | 49 | 179 | 4 | 5 | 4272 | 31 | 0 | 5 | 10 |
Cousins joins an offense in some transition with the loss of offensive coordinator Pat Shurmur but the “bones” of the offense will remain and new coordinator John DeFilippo comes over from the Eagles where he was the quarterback coach that worked with Carson Wentz. DeFilippo is viewed as a rising star coach in the NFL and was considered for head coaching jobs in Arizona and Chicago this year.
Cousins inherits a capable offense that reached the NFC Championship last year. Adam Thielen and Stefon Diggs are entrenched as the starting wideouts with Kyle Rudolph offering an above-average tight end in the scheme. The Vikings lost Dalvin Cook for most of his rookie year but he’s back to get a restart on his career. The offense would have been upgraded with just Cook back. Adding Cousins only adds even more potential to a team that already featured a Top 10 set of wide receivers.
The upgrade in team defense for Cousins means that he’ll have less need to throw than he did in Washington. But that doesn’t mean he won’t post similar numbers. The likely loss of Jerick McKinnon is more than made up by Cook playing. The rookie already caught ten passes for 82 yards over his first three games and offers the complete package. His role in the passing game only makes Cousins more productive.
Cousins won’t likely become a Top 5 quarterback in this offense since there is a reduced need to throw, but the tools and opportunity are there to remain a viable fantasy starter.
