Kirk Cousins, the quarterback for the Vikings, reacts to the season-opening loss to the Tampa Bay Buccaneers.
It goes like this in the odd case of Kirk Cousins.
Kirk is the oddball, overly analytical signal caller who was sent to Minnesota to oversee a run-first offense.
Kirko is a shirtless gunfighter with neck chains that are only surpassed by his ice-cold veins.
The Vikings had Kirko for the majority of last season.
On his way to winning his first division title, Cousins won a career-high 13 games and tied an NFL record with eight game-winning drives. After mounting the largest comeback in NFL history against the Colts—a 460-yard, 4-touchdown performance—Cousins showed up to his postgame press conference sporting the garishest Vikings jacket one could imagine.
When asked about the suit, he replied, “My wife dresses me.
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Between the two sides of Cousins, that day proved to be a holy union.
But Kirk was the one to make a face at the podium following a disappointing loss to the Buccaneers in the season opener on Sunday.
After the game, he apologized for a throw he attempted to squeeze to K in the first half.
J.
When it was intercepted, Osborn was “too aggressive”.
Contrary to that, Kevin O’Connell argued. He does not want his quarterback’s cautious Kirk to become overly so.
After the game, on Monday, O’Connell praised Cousins’ decision-making in a press conference.
O’Connell was clear about what he expected. Cousins “knows that he’s going to continue to be aggressive in those situations.
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“I think it was a situation where he felt like KJ had a chance to split two and possibly score.
That’s not even half a click, maybe a quarter of a click away from probably being a catch.
Looking at it again, I believe the situation at the 13-yard line, where we were, will be a little tighter and things will move more quickly.
“Kirk has run that play numerous times, and he is aware that he will continue to be aggressive in those circumstances. And [it’s] just a unfortunate turn of events given how the outside leverage defender, who was trying to make a difficult catch, ended up and where that ball ended up.
“.
Since Washington, Kirk and Kirko have argued.
Since his time in Washington, Cousins has struggled to decide when to play conservatively versus aggressively.
A Mic’d Up exclusive from 2017 shows Cousins discussing his propensity to let up on the gas when he has the lead with O’Connell, Washington’s quarterbacks coach at the time.
When we have a lead like this, “sometimes I get in a weird place where you start playing conservatively, not to lose.
It’s clever, but it kind of makes it harder for you to just go play,” Cousins said to O’Connell from the sidelines.
O’Connell’s entire justification for moving to Minnesota was to instill this mindset in Cousins, who for years had been criticized for taking checkdowns, taking what was given, and playing it safe.
With the Commanders being uncommitted to Cousins and franchise-tagging him twice before he left in free agency, Washington’s then-head coach Jay Gruden faced a similar challenge.
He is an excessive perfectionist, if he has a weakness at all. He wants everything to be flawless.
Sadly, I don’t always succeed in getting guys 30 f****** yards open.
When Cousins claimed he would throw 20 interceptions if he played as Gruden instructed, Gruden said of him, “There are going to be some tight-window throws he’s going to have to make some days.
He would score about 60 touchdowns annually, in response, said Gruden.
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To defeat the Eagles, Kirko is going to be required.
Of course, given that it was made on second-and-1 with plenty of time remaining, the interception to Osborn turned out to be a poor choice. But it was a necessary step in a process O’Connell does not want Cousins to abandon.
As Cousins was being pressed by a defense that used a lot of blitzes, the Vikings offense struggled in the second half against the Buccaneers.
But in the final stretch, there were lots of untapped opportunities for plays.
Cousins appeared to be hampered for the remainder of the game by his first three errors.
In an effort to at least tie the game, Minnesota’s final two drives ended in three-and-outs.
The Vikings, who are currently winless, play the renowned Eagles defense on Thursday night after being held to just seven points the year before.
O’Connell is aware that Kirko, not Kirk, will be tasked with averting the dreaded 0-2 season start.