Instant Grade: Vikings Land QB Kirk Cousins From the Raiders

Did Minnesota pay a fair price to reunite with its former signal-caller?

The Vikings took a massive step towards solving their offensive issues by acquiring Raiders QB Kirk Cousins at the NFL trade deadline. | USA TODAY Network via Reuters Connect

After hours, days and even weeks of speculation, the Vikings have completed a deal with the Raiders to bring back former quarterback Kirk Cousins to the Land of 10,000 Lakes.

With hours remaining before Tuesday's NFL trade deadline, the Vikings now have their QB1 in a deal that sends Minnesota's 2027 third-round pick to Las Vegas, according to The Ringer's Tom Pelissero.

It's not every day a starting quarterback gets dealt mid-season, but the Vikings were able to make it happen with Cousins, who will now be tasked with jumpstarting the anemic offense. Let's breakdown this whopper of a trade and hand out a grade.

Vikings hit a home run with Kirk Cousins trade

Sure, the Vikings could've—and clearly should've—signed Cousins this March for pennies on the dollar, but that time has passed, and getting a starting-caliber quarterback who knows the offensive scheme better than the currently rostered quarterbacks is impossible to hate.

The third-round pick stings a bit, but really, the Raiders should've held out for more. All week, the reports out of Las Vegas were that they had no intention of moving Cousins, and yet the desperate Vikings came to them on their hands and knees and were able to swipe him away for a late third. For a team that had no other promising alternatives, the Vikings absolutely came out as winners here.

Of course, Cousins is 38 years old and just a few years removed from an Achilles injury, so the risk of adding him is far from zero, but something had to be done. Kyler Murray was struggling to adapt to head coach Kevin O'Connell's system, Carson Wentz was struggling to relearn the sport, apparently, and Brian Flores's generational defense was going to waste.

Having started nine games for the Raiders, Cousins has completed 64.1% of his passes for 2,340 passing yards while throwing 20 touchdowns to six interceptions. His 77.1 offensive grade ranks 12th-best among 35 qualified QBs this season, per Pro Football Focus.

Surely, there'll be a bit of a readjustment period, but no one in the building is happier than Justin Jefferson, who has just 31 catches for 393 yards halfway through the season. With a new general manager at the helm in Nolan Teasley, it was hard to predict how big the Vikings might go, but he clearly recognizes the urgency of the situation and potentially found the savior

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