Vikings Trading For Raiders QB Kirk Cousins

ESPN’s Adam Schefter adds the Raiders will officially turn to first-overall pick Fernando Mendoza as the starting quarterback now.

This had been the likely outcome after the Vikings’ offensive struggles continued on Monday night in Week 9. Minnesota made it clear they were targeting a reunion with their former signal caller to help get the offense back on track.

The Vikings are 6-2 through eight games but rank 31st in offensive yards and 31st in passing yards. Minnesota QB Kyler Murray missed Week 9 with a hamstring injury but struggled in his starts, while backup Carson Wentz struggled to the point where Max Brosmer came in to end Monday night’s game.

With a championship-level defense, there’s a ton of pressure on the Vikings to get the offense right and they were calling around ahead of the trade deadline today to explore their options. 

Cousins, 38, is a former fourth-round pick of Washington back in 2012. He played out the final year of his rookie contract before being franchised in back-to-back seasons. 

Cousins later departed in free agency for a three-year, $84 million contract with the Vikings. He was entering the final year of his contract in 2020 when he agreed to a two-year, $66 million contract extension. In 2021, he agreed to a new one-year, $35 million contract extension that was also fully guaranteed.

He was in the final year of that deal in 2023 and was testing the market as an unrestricted free agent when signing with the Falcons in 2024. He inked a four-year, $180 million contract with $100 million guaranteed. 

Cousins was released by the Falcons this offseason and signed a deal with the Raiders that pays him $20 million in 2026.

In 2026, Cousins has made nine starts for the Raiders and completed 64.1 percent of his passes for 2,340 yards (7.4 YPA), 20 touchdowns and eight interceptions. 

We’ll have more on Cousins and the Vikings’ quarterback situation as the news is available.