![\"Kirk](\"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nfl\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/04\/GettyImages-2191077412-1.jpg\")
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Former Minnesota Vikings quarterback Kirk Cousins is being linked to a rival team in the NFC North in a controversial pitch.<\/p>\n
Former Minnesota Vikings<\/a> quarterback Kirk Cousins<\/a> is at the center of NFL free agency this offseason, and multiple teams are talking to him, although he hasn\u2019t signed with a team yet. Cousins\u2019 last deal was a four-year, $180 million contract<\/a> with the Atlanta Falcons<\/a> that he signed in 2024 with $100 million guaranteed and a $45 million average annual value, according to research from Spotrac<\/a>, so he runs a pretty penny, and that does deter teams.<\/p>\n But, now, Cousins is being linked to a team that\u2019s actually one of the Vikings\u2019 NFC North rivals. It\u2019s a controversial pitch, because this team is out-of-the-box for Cousins, yet, in a strange way, it would make sense.<\/p>\n Kirk Cousins May End Up With NFC North Rival<\/p>\n The Detroit Lions<\/a> already have an expensive quarterback in Jared Goff<\/a>, but the could use a better quarterback room and add depth. The team made the addition of backup quarterback Teddy Bridgewater during the NFL<\/a> offseason, but he\u2019s rusty, so they could use someone who\u2019s a veteran and still has fresh experience.<\/p>\n In a Wednesday, April 1 feature for Detroit Jock City<\/a>, Andrew Hughes makes the case for Cousins going to the Detroit Lions, a Vikings rival.\u00a0\u201cEven though (Teddy) Bridgewater has plenty of experience (65 career starts), his mobility is nowhere near where it was since a 2016 ACL tear with the Minnesota Vikings, further limiting his abilities at the position,\u201d he states in the piece.<\/p>\n Hughes adds that Bridgewater \u201cwas never a gunslinger, so athleticism always let him find guys on checkdowns. At this point, he\u2019s a shell of what he used to be and hasn\u2019t even started a game since 2022.\u201d That\u2019s an \u201couch\u201d kind of statement.<\/p>\n Hughes also questions whether Bridgewater \u201ccould handle the wear and tear of a full season.\u201d So, one option he serves up is Cousins.<\/p>\n \u201cKirk Cousins was designated for a June 1 release<\/a> by the Atlanta Falcons last month and is actively looking for work,\u201d he states in the feature. \u201cThough he\u2019s in demand, the Lions would do well to inquire, especially given an obvious connection to the coaching staff.\u201d<\/p>\n As any good Vikings fan knows, the Lions\u2019 new offensive coordinator, Drew Petzing, worked with Cousins in 2018, when Petzing was the assistant quarterbacks coach in Minnesota.<\/p>\n \u201cEven if Cousins is a long shot, the Lions can\u2019t ignore the fact that their QB2 issue isn\u2019t solved,\u201d Hughes explains in the piece. \u201cIt\u2019s in their best interest to leave no stone unturned to find a legitimate backup for Goff, or else the Lions will be just asking for trouble if Bridgewater is their main insurance policy.\u201d<\/p>\n Another Team Pegged for Kirk Cousins<\/p>\n A team that isn\u2019t a direct Vikings rival that\u2019s being talked about for Cousins is the Las Vegas Raiders<\/a>. In a March 16 feature, John Breech of CBS Sports pegs Cousins for Vegas<\/a>.<\/p>\n \u201cCousins would obviously prefer to go to a team where he might be able to start, but with those options drying up, the Raiders would make a lot of sense,\u201d he notes. \u201cFor one, this would reunite him with Klint Kubiak. The Raiders new head coach spent three seasons (2019-21) in Minnesota with Cousins.\u201d<\/p>\n He adds, \u201cKubiak was Vikings\u2019 QB coach for two years before being promoted to offensive coordinator, so he worked closely with Cousins in Minnesota.\u201d<\/p>\n \n\t\t\tAnne Erickson<\/a> is an award-winning reporter for Heavy Sports covering the NFL, NBA and college football. Anne Erickson has years of experience covering the NFL and additional sports, and her work has been published via ESPN, Fox Sports and more. She has interviewed some of the biggest names in sports, including Detroit Lions quarterback Jared Goff. Erickson also hosts several podcasts and is a Detroit-based radio host. More about Anne Erickson<\/a>\t\t<\/p>\n \n\t\t\tMore Heavy on Vikings\n\t\t<\/p>\n \n\t\t\t\tLoading more stories\n\t\t<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"Getty Former Minnesota Vikings quarterback Kirk Cousins is being linked to a rival team in the NFC North…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":849154,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":"","_share_on_mastodon":"0"},"categories":[2073],"tags":[7,233,259,2529,6,234],"class_list":{"0":"post-849153","1":"post","2":"type-post","3":"status-publish","4":"format-standard","5":"has-post-thumbnail","7":"category-minnesota-vikings","8":"tag-football","9":"tag-minnesota","10":"tag-minnesota-vikings","11":"tag-minnesotavikings","12":"tag-nfl","13":"tag-vikings"},"share_on_mastodon":{"url":"https:\/\/channels.im\/@nfl\/116335023998143676","error":""},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nfl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/849153","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nfl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nfl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nfl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nfl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=849153"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nfl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/849153\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nfl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/849154"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nfl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=849153"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nfl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=849153"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nfl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=849153"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}