The Las Vegas Raiders could use an upgrade at quarterback, and ESPN’s Mina Kimes sees who she feels is the perfect target for them this offseason: Kirk Cousins.
Cousins has spent the last six years with the Minnesota Vikings, but he is slated to hit free agency next month, and it’s looking more and more like the Vikings will let him explore the open market.
Kimes thinks Cousins would be a good fit for the Raiders, who are currently employing Aidan O’Connell under center.
“When you talk about who’s going to play quarterback for them next year, you start considering not options just in the draft but also in free agency,” Kimes said on a recent episode of NFL Live. “Specifically, Kirk Cousins, who is a free agent – I think most people agree is going to be probably the highest-paid free-agent quarterback. I think they’d be able to afford his contract, and I would like that for them. Because I think it’s a good destination. I would like Las Vegas to make a run at Kirk and see if they can entice him to come south.”
Cousins played in eight games before tearing his Achilles this past season. Couple that with his age (he will be 36 years old by the time Week 1 begins), and you can see why some teams may have trepidation about signing him to a lucrative contract.
That being said, there is no doubt that the idea of Cousins is tempting.
Prior to going down with the injury, Cousins was brilliant, having thrown for 2,331 yards, 18 touchdowns and five interceptions while completing 69.5 percent of his passes and posting a passer rating of 103.8.
During his time with the Vikings, Cousins has made three trips to the Pro Bowl, most recently doing so in 2022 after totaling 4,547 yards, 29 touchdowns and 14 picks.
As a matter of fact, Cousins threw 30 or more touchdowns in three of his first four seasons in Minnesota.
Las Vegas does not seem entirely comfortable with going into next year with O’Connell at signal-caller. While the Purdue product demonstrated some flashes during his rookie campaign, he certainly did not show enough to warrant handing him the keys to the starting quarterback job.
As a result, the Raiders are still in the hunt for a quarterback, and Kirk Cousins could end up being a very viable option for them in the coming weeks.
Las Vegas went 8-9 this past year.
Want the latest NFL analysis, breaking news, and insider information? Click here. Interested in reading storylines and analysis about the NBA? Check out our partner NBA Analysis Network.
