ESPN’s Jeremy Fowler has been on a roll as of late giving us a top-ten list from NFL decision-makers on every position, from safeties and tight ends to interior offensive linemen and edge rushers. But today, we got into the meat and potatoes of the argument: the top-ten quarterbacks list. At the top, there are the normal names: Patrick Mahomes, Josh Allen, Joe Burrow, etc. However, near the bottom of the list, Atlanta Falcons fans searched for their new quarterback, formerly of the Minnesota Vikings, Kirk Cousins, hoping he could crack the list based on his MVP-like performance through the first eight games of 2023.
Alas, the injury was too much for the voters to ignore, relegating the 35-year-old to the Honorable Mentions list with names such as Trevor Lawrence, Tua Tagovailoa and Brock Purdy, that tier of quarterbacks who have those underlying questions surrounding their play but are still paid (or in Purdy’s case, going to be paid) handsomely because of the importance of the position.
However, there was one AFC offensive coach who believes Cousins being on this list is no fluke. He went so far as to say that Cousins has "proven he can be elite” throughout his career with the Vikings.
"From '21 to now he's basically been that. The [Vikings] had no chance without him last year."
Through the first eight weeks of the season, Cousins had the Vikings offense 11th in EPA/play and 12th in Success rate, buoyed by Cousins leading Minnesota with the second-most passing yards and passing touchdowns in the NFL behind only the red-hot Miami Dolphins and the aforementioned Tagovailoa. Without Cousins, Minnesota’s passing game spiraled, throwing the most interceptions of any passing offense in the league and ranking 21st in EPA/dropback (they were 9th in that metric with Cousins at the helm) to end the season.
Atlanta’s offense didn't fare much better than Minnesota’s, ranking 24th from week 8 through the end of the season. The lack of a consistent passing threat let defenses key in on Atlanta’s running game, making a rushing attack that was top-three in EPA/rush in 2022, drop to an abysmal 28th in 2023.
Can Cousins “prove to be elite” in 2024? The answer is he should. The weaponry that he has at his disposal with the dynamic trio of Drake London, Kyle Pitts and Bijan Robinson along with key contributors Darnell Mooney and Rondale Moore, behind one of the league’s best offensive lines, rivals, if not surpasses what he had in Minnesota. The running game in the first eight weeks in Minnesota was mediocre. They had to wait until the Green Bay Packers game where Cousins got hurt before they saw their first rushing touchdown. In Atlanta, Cousins has arguably one of the most talented running back rooms in the league.
If Cousins can’t look the part of an elite quarterback by the end of this season, there’s a good chance that it’s not because of the infrastructure surrounding him.
