An Interview w/ Mackey: Cousins Criticism, Defensive Hope, and A Draft Path
K. Joudry
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Earlier in the week, I reached out to Phil Mackey (who is on Twitter!) of SKOR North. He graciously accepted my request for an interview, handling my questions with aplomb. Below, you’ll find the three questions I sent in his direction in bold. His answers are provided in full after the question. I then offer a few thoughts toward the end.
Enjoy.
1) Would it be fair to say that you’ve been critical of Kirk Cousins? If so, what are the main concerns you have about Minnesota’s QB1? I’ve found myself increasingly concerned about how much of the cap he demands. Does he give Minnesota enough room to fill out the roster in a manner that will allow for a legit run at the Super Bowl?
As far as my criticism of Cousins, people can characterize it however they want. I praise him when he performs well, but my macro stance remains the same: I think he’s somewhere around the 13th or 14th best QB in the NFL, and he consistently pushes for short-term, inflexible contracts that make it difficult for the front office to fill out a Super Bowl contending roster. I always say Cousins is a gravitational pull toward .500. He is talented enough to protect his teams from finishing with four wins, but his deficiencies and cap hits require too much help around him — and not enough remaining resources — for his teams to ultimately win 11, 12 or 13 games and truly contend (which has never happened). “What deficiencies? He throws for 4,000 yards every season!” Yes. But he ranks near the bottom of the league against pressure (something you’ll never be able to fully avoid), and his performance suffers late in games, analytics, when opposing teams know he must throw the ball. The Athletic did a great study on this last year, ranking QBs since 2000 by successful drive rate late in the game when trailing. Cousins didn’t crack the top 70. With the third highest cap hit (still) in the NFL, he can’t just be a cog in the machine. He needs to be a driving force. Maybe KOC will help him unlock some things.
2) Has Kwesi Adofo-Mensah done enough to get the defense back into being among the game’s best? How much of a difference can Ed Donatell make as a coordinator? What does success look like for this defense in 2022?
I’m still pretty skeptical about the Vikings defense due to aging players and health questions. But on paper, they have some pretty damn good players. If Za’Darius and Danielle can stay healthy, watch out. If the Vikings can boost the underachieving offense from 14th in PPG to something closer to 5th, playing defense will be a lot easier. Mike Zimmer teams had a propensity to grind close games. It’s time for the offense to take some bigger leads and allow the defense to work the pass rush.
3) Obviously, the draft is the main thing on the minds of Minnesota fans (and NFL fans more broadly). What’s an ideal outcome in this draft? Have the Vikings put themselves in a position where they need to address a specific need or can they actually go BPA?
I would actually love to see the Vikings add one of the top WRs in the first round. KOC will run mostly “11” personnel. Imagine Justin Jefferson, Adam Thielen, stud rookie WR, Dalvin Cook and Irv Smith on the field together for long stretches. And KJ Osborn jumping in as depth. Unstoppable. The Vikings, over the last 30 years, are at their best when playing track meet, offensive football indoors.
A few quick thoughts as a follow up to the answers from Phil Mackey.
The Cousins contract is reason for concern. As he suggests, Minnesota’s QB1 will have the third largest cap hit in the 2022 season. That’s a disproportionately large hit for someone who is merely good. Plus, a recent piece I wrote suggests that giving him 15% is – at least according to salary cap history – prohibitive for winning the Super Bowl. I know that reasonable minds can disagree on the Vikings’ QB, but it certainly seems that more and more fans & writers are becoming skeptical about Mr. Cousins.
The issue with the defense, as Mackey suggests, isn’t with all the starters. Getting and staying healthy is the key, especially up front. For this reason, I disagree with his push for a RD1 receiver. I hear what he’s saying about having a top-tier offense, and I agree that an elite offense helps the defense. Nevertheless, it’s possible the team can mostly get there on offense with the current weapons. Filling out the defensive depth feels more pressing, at least to my small football mind.
Minor quibbles aside, Mackey provides some good thoughts in the interview. Be sure to check out his work!
Editor’s Note: Purple PTSD extends a sincere thanks to Phil Mackey for taking the time for this interview. Interested readers can find his work on SKOR North and on Twitter.
Purple PTSD: Who Should Be the Next Vikings Quarterback?
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