Kirk Cousins’ Numbers Are Fool’s Gold

While the Minnesota Vikings pulled off a somewhat impressive win this past Sunday, toppling the then 4-7 Carolina Panthers by a score of  28-27, when the larger statistical picture of the season overall is analyzed, especially through the lens of quarterback Kirk Cousins, a much bleaker picture comes into focus. 

Now, before getting into the negative, we must go back to week 10 of the NFL season, giving credit where credit is due. Back two weeks ago in mid-November, quarterback Kirk Cousins had a stellar game against the then 5-4 Chicago Bears, tossing 25/36 passes for 292 yards, two touchdowns, and only one interception in a 19-13 win. Thanks mostly to Chicago’s abysmal offense offsetting their excellent defense, Cousins was able to get himself over the 2,000 overall yard mark for the 2020 season, ending the game with 2,147 yards then on the year.

While 2,147 yards may seem like at least passable numbers for a starting quarterback, when the list of passing yard leaders is analyzed, Cousins only ranks 18th on the list of eligible quarterbacks. This cataloging put him behind the likes of rookies Joe Burrow and Justin Herbert, as well as Deshaun Watson, who despite being an absurd talent, can only do so much with what might be the worst roster in the NFL. 

In fact, up until week nine, Cousins was shockingly still behind the Dallas Cowboys quarterback Dak Prescott in overall passing yards. Prescott, who left a week five game against the New York Giants with a compound fracture in his ankle, has not retaken the gridiron since. Despite this, with 1,856 yards, Prescott still topped Cousins up until the weekend of the game against Chicago. That means that despite playing four and a half more games than Prescott up until then, Cousins just barely managed to throw for more yards than him on the season. 

With this iteration of the Vikings offense on track to be the best in franchise history, a statistical reality that has become ever more clear with this most recent victory over an underrated Panther’s defense, one cannot help but wonder just what this team might be able to do with a different, more competent quarterback under center. 

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