The Minnesota Vikings needed steady quarterback play to complement their championship-caliber defense. After Kyler Murray and Carson Wentz struggled to provide it, Minnesota traded a 2027 third-round pick to the Las Vegas Raiders for Kirk Cousins.
Cousins made an immediate impact in the Vikings’ 30–10 win over the Green Bay Packers. He completed 21 of 31 passes for 210 yards, two touchdowns and one interception, finishing with a 94.8 passer rating. Although he had joined the team only days earlier, Minnesota’s offense found success against Green Bay.
Former NFL player Ryan Clark said the contrast between the Vikings’ offense before and after Cousins’ arrival was striking. Comparing Minnesota’s Nov. 9 game against the Buffalo Bills with its Nov. 15 matchup against the Packers, Clark described the improvement as remarkable, noting that the Vikings scored 17 points in the first half and looked like a professional offense.
Former NFL running back Le’Veon Bell also praised the move during the game, suggesting Cousins’ arrival might have made Minnesota the best team in football.
## Cousins Provides the Quarterback Play Minnesota Needed
The Athletic’s Ted Nguyen said Cousins was delivering the kind of play Minnesota had been missing, including throwing with anticipation that the Vikings had not seen from their quarterbacks in years.
Before facing Green Bay, Cousins had recorded a 97.1 passer rating, 2,340 passing yards, 20 touchdowns and eight interceptions in nine games that season. His performance against the Packers extended the encouraging start to his Minnesota return, even after a midseason change of team.
## Cris Carter on Cousins’ Return to Minnesota
Former Vikings wide receiver Cris Carter said the decision to bring Cousins back was driven in part by the crowd’s reaction during the Nov. 9 game against Buffalo. He recalled fans booing the home team, particularly the quarterback play, and said the situation pushed the Vikings to act.
Carter also said the team had been on the phone Monday night and described Cousins as the right fit moving forward. In his view, Cousins was the only quarterback who could give Minnesota Super Bowl aspirations while allowing for a smooth transition because he already knew the offense.
