Seasons of consecutive losses led to the dismissal of Minnesota Vikings head coach Mike Zimmer in January.
The quarterback leading these teams remains. It turned out that Zimmer was not so hot with him.
According to Chad Graf of The Athletic, Zimmer “complained openly” in coaching meetings for Kirk Cousins, who defended the Vikings for half of Zimmer’s eight seasons in Minnesota. According to the report, Zimmer did not believe that Cousins had promoted his teammates, used enough chances or made enough “winning plays”.
Zimmer was clearly not alone. According to the report, members of his coaching staff shared his opinion of Cousins. Front office members are reportedly blaming Zimmer, believing he hasn’t done enough to get the most out of his quarterback. The facts confirm the latter. Zimmer left. It’s not the cousins, at least not yet.
Will Cousins stay in Minnesota?
Zimmer’s reported disappointments with Cousins are related to Vikings fans, who have witnessed a playoff victory since Cousins arrived from Washington in 2018. Cousins joined the Vikings the same year, welcomed by some making a difference in the quarterback after he appeared from drafting colleague Robert Griffin III Shadow in Washington.
Cousins’ historic, fully guaranteed three-year, $ 84 million contract suggests the Minnesota front office believes so. Former general manager Rick Spielman oversaw the deal and the subsequent two-year extension of Cousins by $ 66 million. Like Zimmer, he is no more.
Cousins have solid results in Minnesota, making 68.3% of their passes for 260.1 yards per game with 7.7 yards of experience. He has an average of 31 touchdowns and nine touchdowns per season with the Vikings.
But the only appearance in the playoffs looms over Cousins, as well as a violation that has never been confused among the league’s elite. A unit ranked with playmakers in Justin Jefferson, Dalwin Cook and Adam Tylen failed to break the league’s top 10 in yards (12th) or points (14th) during the 8-9 campaign in 2021. The unit 2020, involving the same players, finished fourth in yards but 11th in points. Final 7-9 this season also left Minnesota out of the playoffs.
New head coach Kevin O’Connell, who coached Cousins’ quarterbacks in Washington, praised Cousins as a playmaker after taking a job in Minnesota. Because of course there is. While Cousins is scheduled to meet the Vikings, O’Connell will not drag him out in public.
That doesn’t mean O’Connell isn’t sincere in his praise. But as the free agency and the draft approach, it makes sense for Minnesota to at least test the waters to upgrade the quarterback, even if Cousins’ $ 45 million salary hit makes the move unlikely. If the Vikings do that, it will be a year too late for Zimmer.