Sometimes You've Got To Go Back To Actually Move Forward: The Vikings Just Traded a 3rd Rounder For Kirk Cousins And Are Now Firmly Established As a Super Bowl Contender
Michael Owens. Getty Images.Last night offered the Vikings a glimpse into what life would look like with Carson Wentz being their starting QB for the rest of the season. Things went so badly that they felt they had no choice but to pay the piper and get a quarterback before today's 4PM deadline. The definition of the meme "our expectations were low but holy fuck."
A few names thrown out there today were Justin Herbert, Shedeur Sanders, Dillon Gabriel, Daniel Jones, and Geno Smith. One felt the most obvious though. Obvious enough for Packers DC Jonathan Gannon to basically reveal he expected to face him this coming Sunday.
Well, a few hours later the Vikings made it official. Kirk is back, heading to Minnesota for a 3rd rounder.
Sometimes you've got to go back to actually move forward
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As a fan of a different contending team in the NFC North, this is a big problem. Not because Kirk is necessarily an elite QB anymore, but more that he's simply competent. It sounds silly to think a trade for Kirk Cousins in 2026 is a move that catapults you to a tier of winning it all, but that's how nasty the Vikings defense is, plus the Maserati sitting in the garage in Justin Jefferson. Move the ball just a little bit, find Jetta, don't turn the ball over.
You saw it last night. Even with Wentz putting together one of the worst performances your eyes will ever see, they were still in the game in the 3rd quarter. They rattled off six consecutive wins to begin the season despite having a bottom 5 offense in the league. Give them even a solid QB and they become a fucking monster to be feared by everyone.
I talked about it yesterday, but the NFC playoff picture is a nightmare to sort out. Now it gets even tougher to piece together. Two of these teams are missing the dance: 49ers, Bears, Vikings, Seahawks, Lions, Packers, Rams. Right now LA looks like the most in trouble without Puka and Davante for a bit. Still, they have Garrett back to pair with Donald. They're still scary I don't care what you say. Seattle won the Super Bowl last year, but their offense is in a state of flux. The Lions have flaws, but a cake walk of a schedule coming up. Green Bay is playing their best ball with Micah Parsons on the verge of returning, but their offensive line/run game/schedule isn't exactly promising. Minnesota has dropped two in a row, but now get a serious boost to their inept offense. The Bears keep winning games and have gone to another level with Simmons on defense, but their schedule isn't pretty either. Someone very good is going to miss the postseason here and Sunday's Packers-Vikings rematch just became another massive swing game to answer that puzzle.
On the flip side of this trade, the Raiders cash in on Kirk who they brought in to do exactly this. Play competent football for a bit while you teach Mendoza the tricks of the trade, then trade him for draft capital when the team is right. Perfectly executed by everyone involved. No Raiders fan is going to be upset about trading Cousins while you're 4-5 and on the outside looking in. It's Fernando Mendoza time. Should there be a bit of concern for Mendoza now that his bible buddy is being shipped out? Good luck to Fernando battling the demons of Vegas on his own. His fate is in the lord's hands.