RGIII throws thinly veiled shade at Cousins after Vikings draft QB Mond
Joe Johnson
|
Minnesota Vikings quarterback Kirk Cousins may have amassed a ton of elite (and one of-a-kind) stats over the years, like being the only NFL quarterback to throw for over 25 touchdowns each of the last six seasons, but he still doesn’t get a ton of respect from people who heard someone say he was a garbage time quarterback back in 2018.
Those people, whether national or local, have a myriad of motivations behind their objectively wrong point of view, but the most recent adherent to the (albeit shrinking) “Cousins is bad” chorus has a pretty obvious and pathetic reason for popping up and dissing Captain Kirk.
Former Washington (then) Redskins one season wonder quarterback Robert Griffin III was interviewed Friday night about the NFL Draft when the topic of Cousins and his heir apparent, Vikings second-round pick Kellen Mond, came up.
First, the interview:
“I can tell you right now No. 8 in Minnesota (Cousins) is probably not real happy right now,” Griffin said on Bleacher Report Gridiron, “because Kellen Mond represents exactly what he doesn’t do well, right? Kellen Mond is the big, physical quarterback who can run and throw it all over the field, and I don’t think that’s something No. 8 can do. … But I think that’s what the coaching staff and the administration — I should say the organization — is looking for.”
RGIII knows Cousins well, as he was drafted in the same year for the same team, and was eventually replaced by him three-quarters of the way through their sophomore seasons.
I think you can see why RGIII might be a bit salty. I mean, it isn’t a coincidence he brings up the “paycheck” aspect of Cousins’ life. Obviously it isn’t Cousins fault that RGIII’s knee gave out after his legendary rookie season, nor is it his fault that RGIII tried to emulate Adrian Peterson by coming back super humanly soon from his injury.
Also, it’s sort of Cousins job to play as well as possible (just as it it’s RGIII’s job to do the same). You could say that RGIII has a point and that Mond is more mobile, but Cousins is actually pretty good at throwing on the run and to suggest he’s just “collecting a check” while your other criticism (the running bit) explains that he’s actually done the best anyone could while having next to no pass protection. Otherwise, why would he need to run enough for it to be the prime thing you point to as Mond’s edge over Cousins?
If anything the Vikings have wasted those checks, as they only tonight shored up their pass blocking unit for Cousins and company despite paying him enough guaranteed money since 2018 to make RGIII drive by Cousins’ house at night with his headlights off. But to suggest that Cousins should’ve done what even Patrick Mahomes couldn’t, win a championship without pass protection? as a checkmate argument as to how he’s “collected a check” and not much else?
At best? It shows an ignorance to the situation in Minnesota, bias or both. It also raises the question of what you’d label RGIII if he lost his career to a guy who is just a check collector? If it’s really that simple, should RGIII still be in the league doing the same instead of this transparent nonsense? Especially as RGIII was a mobile QB?
Like the other “points” that argument also just makes RGIII look bad, not Cousins. So let’s hope that whatever job RGIII has now it’s not as a trial lawyer.
“Your honor! The defense attorney that just beat me, again, has a speech impediment and reads at a third grade level and is only here because he’s paid a tremendous amount for his services which are directly tied to his performance!”
See what I mean?