Inside The Vikings

Analyst floats idea of Kirk Cousins reunion if Vikings can't re-sign Sam Darnold

Cousins appears likely to be cut by the Atlanta Falcons this offseason.
Atlanta Falcons quarterback Kirk Cousins and Minnesota Vikings head coach Kevin O'Connell talk after the game at U.S. Bank Stadium in Minneapolis on Dec. 8, 2024.
Atlanta Falcons quarterback Kirk Cousins and Minnesota Vikings head coach Kevin O'Connell talk after the game at U.S. Bank Stadium in Minneapolis on Dec. 8, 2024. | Jeffrey Becker-Imagn Images

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Minnesota Vikings

All reports appear to indicate the Minnesota Vikings would like to re-sign quarterback Sam Darnold in free agency. But should Darnold find a longer term and more lucrative deal elsewhere, the Vikings may have to shift gears to a backup plan.

Any quarterback Minnesota signs aside from Darnold likely means J.J. McCarthy will be the starting quarterback next season. But the Vikings surely want a veteran in the locker room to compete with him for the starting job this fall and to be a contingency plan should McCarthy not be ready to take over or in the case of injury. Re-signing Daniel Jones would fit that bill and appears to make a lot of sense as Jones is familiar with the offense after signing with the team last season.

But there's another familiar face who would also make some sense — former Vikings starter Kirk Cousins, who could be released by the Atlanta Falcons this offseason. That's an idea NFL Network's Daniel Jeremiah floated on the network on Thursday, and Jeremiah made an appearance on ESPN's The Pat McAfee Show Friday to clarify his thoughts on Cousins.

"I think people misinterpreted the Cousins thing, 'Why would they bring back (Cousins) and not let (McCarthy) go?'" Jeremiah said on the ESPN show on Friday. "No, no, (McCarthy's) gonna be the starter, but you have to have some veteran insurance there. First of all, the guy needs to stay healthy, and with Kirk Cousins, I just thought it was a unique opportunity for somebody ... who knows the offense inside and out. Atlanta's footing the bill, so it's going to cost you nothing."

The idea does make some sense. Cousins spent two seasons with Kevin O'Connell, so it wouldn't take much catching up to relearn the offense. By all accounts, Cousins handled the situation gracefully last season when the Falcons benched him in favor of rookie Michael Penix Jr. And should McCarthy not be ready to start in Week 1 for whatever reason, Cousins is a quarterback who can win you games. Atlanta has suggested it may keep Cousins around this season as the backup to Penix, but if Cousins is cut, the Falcons still have to pay him, and Minnesota could sign him for a league minimum contract.

"That's in the Falcons' best interest to put that out there. 'Hey, no, we're comfortable. We're not going to cut him, we're going to hold on to him, so if you want him, you got to trade for him and then you're going to have to eat some of this money,'" Jeremiah said. "I don't really read too much into what's coming out of Atlanta at that point."

According to Sports Illustrated's Albert Breer, Cousins met with Falcons owner Arthur Blank and expressed that he wants to go somewhere he can start in 2025. The Falcons said they'll do what's best for the team at the quarterback position.

For now, it would seem the priority is re-signing Darnold, but if another team is willing to make a longer commitment, perhaps that opens the door for a reunion with Cousins, who was playing his best ball under O'Connell a few years ago.

"If everything's equal, if you have Minnesota with a one-year offer and say it's Pittsburgh and whoever else in the mix there, if it's all one year, even for less money, I think you stay in Minnesota if you're sitting there as Sam Darnold," Jeremiah said. "But if one of these teams is going to commit to you longer than that, I think you have to take it."

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