Opinion Monday: Making the Case for a Kirk Cousins MVP Season
Jhawthorn16
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Kirk Cousins made NFL history earlier this offseason, agreeing to a 3-year, 84 million-dollar contract with the Minnesota Vikings. Oh, and let’s not forget that all 84 million dollars in that contract, are FULLY GUARATEED. Cousins took less money to come to Minnesota, and some reports have it estimated that he left 4 million a season on the table. In my opinion, Cousins took less money to come to a team with an established defense, and an offense that had begun to flourish in 2017. Cousins saw an opportunity to be the starting quarterback for a team with two of the best wide receivers in the NFL, as well as a promising young running back, and an elite, pro bowl level tight end. The other teams he considered just didn’t have the talent on offense to offer what Minnesota did, and what Minnesota can offer is the ability to win championships and elevate Cousins to an MVP winning season. Today I want to break down what Cousins did in Washington and make the case for a Kirk Cousins MVP season in 2018.
Let’s start with what Kirk did in Washington. Kirk was a good quarterback, and in the three seasons he started, he never missed a game. What he did during those three seasons was also very impressive. Kirk threw for over 4,000 yards in every season he started. During the 2015 season he threw for 4,166 yards, tossed 29 touchdowns, and threw 11 interceptions. He had a 69.8% completion percentage and led the Redskins to the postseason. In 2016, Kirk had another good year. He threw for 4,917 yards, 25 touchdowns, and 12 picks. He had a 67% completion percentage, and the Redskins finished with 8 wins. While his team may have only won 8 games, when you look at the scores the Redskins’ defense was letting teams put up against them, you have to winder if they deserve some blame. The Redskins played in 7 games that season where the opposing team scored 26 or more points. All Vikings fans should know by now, the Vikings have only lost 1 or 2 games since Zimmer took over when the offense puts up 17 or more points. This has been called by some broadcasters the “Magic Number” that can guarantee the Vikings a win. Well, in 2016 Kirk Cousins had 12 games where he scored 17 or more points. In two games his team only managed to put up 16 points, and with the Vikings’ defense averaging a mere 15.8 points per game last season, these 16-point games could be wins. This would put the Vikings at a very respectable 14-2 record, and maybe earn them a number 1 seed in the playoffs. Now let’s look at Kirk’s 2017 season. He threw for 4,093 yards, tossed 27 touchdowns, and threw 13 picks. His completion percentage dropped off, as he only completed 64.3% of his passes. I have a theory on why his numbers took a dip however. Cousins was sacked 43 times last year, which is nearly double the amount of times he was sacked the two years prior. Cousins didn’t have a line to protect him and that is not something the Vikings have figured out. The Vikings offensive line could be troublesome, but let’s stay positive and say the line holds up. Cousins has shown that, when he can be kept clean, he can make some big throws and win some games. Also, last year Kirk and his offensive hit that magic number “17,” 13 times. This season also saw Washington let Pierre Garcon and Desean Jackson leave the team, leaving Cousins with a lack of star power at receiver. Cousins has shown that he can put points on the board consistently, and scores 17 or more 12-13 times a year, meaning the Vikings should win 12-13 games each year with him.
Now that we’ve covered the statistical side of Kirk Cousins, let’s breakdown his game and see how he likes to make plays, and who he likes to throw to. If you watched any Redskins game from a year ago, you would notice instantly that Kirk Cousins LOVES throwing the ball to his running backs. Chris Thompson caught 39 passes for 510 yards this past season. Samaje Perine added 22 catches for 182 yards. Cousins completed 61 passes to his running backs for 692 yards. For comparison, last season the Vikings threw the ball to 3 running backs all season. Latavius Murray caught 15 passes for 103 yards, Jerrick McKinnon caught 51 for 421, and Dalvin Cook caught 11 passes for 90 yards. The Vikings completed 77 passes to running backs for 614 yards. This tendency to throw to his running backs is a good thing, as the Vikings were able to find a lot of success last season finding the shifty runner Jerrick McKinnon out of the backfield for big plays, and this year Cook should be able to fill that role nicely and catch plenty of passes from cousins. Now let’s breakdown what type of routes Cousins’ receivers were running and see how that compares to his new team. Cousins loves to throw the ball into the gap between the corner and safety in a cover 2 defense. This hole has always been exploited, but if a quarterback isn’t careful with how he uses his eyes, it can get his receiver hurt or the ball can be intercepted by the corner or safety. Cousins is very good at using his eyes to move the safety away, and with Diggs being one of the NFL’s best receivers on routes of 20 or more yards, and Thielen being one of the most sure-handed receivers I’ve ever seen, either one of them could easily exploit this hole perfectly and gain 15-20 yards in a play against a cover 2 defense. When Kirk isn’t slinging the ball into this hole in cover 2, he really likes hitting his tight-end over the middle off play action. This fits so well in Minnesota because Kyle Rudolph is an elite tight-end who just out-rebounds the football from people. Rudolph won’t make any crazy runs after he catches the ball, but he has already formed a bond with Cousins and Cousins has said throwing to Rudolph is like throwing into a mattress. Cousins can also throw a very accurate deep ball, and he isn’t afraid of throwing a contested pass and giving his guy a chance. Thielen and Diggs are obviously capable of getting open and they will catch plenty of deep passes from Cousins, but this could be the year LaQuan Treadwell finally steps up. Treadwell could prove early on he deserves a spot as an outside receiver, moving Diggs or Thielen inside to the slot, and allowing Treadwell to get those 50/50 balls thrown his way and he has the skillset to catch them for big gains. Cousins can also have a running back that was on pace for over 1,600 yards last season in Dalvin Cook. Cook got injured of course, but he should come back and get back to work and run for over 1,000. Last year Cousins’ running game was bad, as his leading rusher didn’t even get to 700 yards and this caused a lack of play action passing. The Redskins did use play action in their offense, but not effectively as linebackers didn’t have to take the Redskins’ running attack seriously. With the Vikings, defenses will have to respect Cook and Murray, opening up some big play opportunities in the play action offense. The Vikings have better weapons for Cousins to utilize than what he had in Washington, and Cousins should be able to flourish in the Vikings system and put up the best numbers of his career here.
Kirk Cousins was made a very wealthy man when he signed his deal with the Vikings, but he didn’t come to the Vikings for wealth alone. Kirk Cousins saw a golden opportunity to sign with a team that is coming off a 13-3 season, has some of the most talented offensive players in the NFL, and has proven their defense to be elite. Cousins understands that he is expected to win and win a lot. Cousins knows he is expected to win a Super Bowl or two. However, I doubt Cousins is worried about an MVP season. Cousins seems like the type of guy who wants to win for his teammates and win with his teammates. When Cousins scores a touchdown, he doesn’t say “I made a great pass,” or “I made a good adjustment at the line.” Cousins says his receiver made a good play. Cousins leads his teammates and tells them what he expects from them and gives them credit when they perform well. Cousins is a natural leader and will command the Vikings offense to many victories. Cousins may not be worried about an MVP trophy, but I believe his play on the field will earn him an MVP trophy after the year is over. I expect Kirk Cousins to throw for 4,700 yards, 30 touchdowns, and 5 picks. I want to see his receivers making plays for him to lower his interceptions and I want to see him flourish in this Vikings offense with all these weapons he has around him. Kirk Cousins, while a Super Bowl is the ultimate goal, if you play this caliber of football, and MVP is sure to follow. SKOL.