Coming Soon: Kirk The Scrambler
Dustin Baker
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Few on-the-field tendencies give folks more Kirk Cousins-related excitement than the occasions he rushes the football.
Cousins is not a prominent tucker-and-runner of the pigskin. But when he does, he looks relatively competent in doing so. Cousins is not statuesque like Tom Brady or a Dan Marino-type in the pocket, yet he chooses to throw the ball – even to a fault sometimes – when the pocket collapses.
Well, that’s all going to change, says Cousins. At age 33 (when the season starts), the Vikings signal-caller decided it’s time to scamper a little bit more.
The Michigan State alumnus rushes so infrequently, that when he does – it feels like a big deal. Fans jokingly liken him to Lamar Jackson in Baltimore or Fran Tarkenton, a Viking forefather, when he takes off.
In 2020, Cousins rushed for a teensy 156 yards, but this total was more than his other two seasons with the Vikings. So, this run-the-ball thing initiated by Cousins is a work in progress. It’s one of the few Cousins traits that galvanizes everyone as folks are notoriously hot and cold on his aptitudes. When he unexpectedly tucks and scrambles for a first down, even the Cousins truthers say something to the effect of, “See. I like that. He should do more of that.”
The Washington version of Cousins actually ran the football at apropos times. He was the team’s full-time starter from 2015 to 2017, scoring 13 rushing touchdowns inside those three seasons. Among quarterbacks, that was the third-most in the NFL, behind Cam Newton (21) and Tyrod Taylor (14). In those three years, Cousins rushed for eight more touchdowns than Russell Wilson, if that can be believed.
He’s never been asked to be a focal point of the offense via running the football. But Washington chose to use him more in the redzone for scampering.
Upon joining the Vikings, the rushing touchdowns plummeted. He’s scored three touchdowns on the ground with Minnesota. Those paydirts are followed by memorable touchdown dances. To reiterate, he banked 13 in the nation’s capital in the same timespan (three seasons). Something changed – either playcalling or decision-making.
The interesting aspect about Kirk The Scrambler is speed. The man isn’t slow. He isn’t fast either. Right in the middle – is the best way to describe his speed as a quarterback.
In terms of running the ball, his rushing load is akin to Matthew Stafford, Derek Carr, and Jared Goff. If you mentally compare the rushing workloads of those quarterbacks to Cousins, the men all register about five to eight rushing yards per game, a pint-sized total. On the other hand, Lamar Jackson notches about 63 rushing yards per game. Kyler Murray is at about 43. Josh Allen – 36.
Those players are the fancy-style quarterback that fans crave. Cousins won’t get there, but his comments today on KFAN indicate he’s willing to try his rendition of rushing the ball more often.