Kirk Cousins’ Vikings tenure was rocky, but the veteran helped stabilize the quarterback position for six seasons. After leaving Minnesota to sign with the Falcons in the offseason, Cousins made his return to Minnesota on Sunday.
Entering the game, the Vikings near the top of the NFC standings with a 10-2 record, while the Falcons were 6-6, but tied for first in the NFC South. Still, Cousins wanted to show Minnesota that the team made the wrong decision in letting him go.
The Sporting News breaks down Cousins’ performance in his first game against his former team.
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Kirk Cousins stats vs. Vikings
As Cousins took the field to begin the game in Minnesota, Vikings fans chose to boo their former quarterback in his return.
Cousins played six seasons in Minnesota, playing in 88 total games and making the playoffs twice, which included one playoff win.
After the game, Cousins praised Minnesota fans for creating a tough environment for opponents.
“It’s a great fanbase. I expected them to make it hostile,” Cousins said, via ESPN’s Marc Raimondi. “They did a great job of that.”
In his first game against the Vikings since leaving Minnesota, Cousins completed 23 of 37 passes for 344 yards, no touchdowns and two interceptions.
| Completions/Attempts | 23/37 |
| Passing Yards | 344 |
| Passing Touchdowns | 0 |
| Interceptions | 2 |
| Passer Rating | 70.1 |
Kirk Cousins highlights vs. Vikings
Cousins came into Sunday struggling, as he had thrown no touchdowns and six interceptions in the last three games and there weren’t many positives to take away against the Vikings.
The struggles continued to begin the game against Atlanta, as Cousins tossed a crucial interception in the first half.
Then, down 14 with under seven minutes to go in the game, Cousins threw another interception, this time in the red zone that essentially ended the game.
While the yardage was there for Cousins, the veteran quarterback failed to throw a touchdown for the fourth straight game, while turning the ball over eight times in that span. On the season, Cousins now has a league-leading 15 interceptions, which is also his new career-worst.
Cousins told the media that he believed today’s performance was as step in the right direction. However, he is still frustrated by the lack of touchdowns in the past month.
“Yeah, last week was a low bar, but I felt better today, more like myself,”he said, via Tori McElhaney. “I would love to be playing with a lot more production. It’s been disappointing the last four weeks to not have a touchdown.”
Will the Falcons bench Kirk Cousins?
Despite Cousins’ struggles, head coach Raheem Morris remains committed to him as the starter.
“Everything is always discussed, but Kirk Cousins is our quarterback,” he said, via The Athletic‘s Josh Kendall.
The Falcons fell to 6-7 with the loss, and are one game back of the Buccaneers in the NFC South after Tampa Bay beat the Raiders on Sunday.
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