The Vikings wanted to keep their quarterback, Kirk Cousins. But how much did they want him? Two weeks later, we still don’t know the exact terms of Minnesota’s final offer. However, Vikings owner Mark Wilf recently revealed a crucial detail about the deal.
According to Kevin Seifert of ESPN.com, Wilf mentioned that the Vikings didn’t fully guarantee the first two years of the contract. This means it would have been a one-year deal, with the team having the option for 2025.
In contrast, the Falcons offered Cousins $90 million guaranteed for the first two years of the contract, plus an additional $10 million that becomes guaranteed next March.
Many believe that Minnesota’s first choice was to keep Cousins, but now they may be considering other options.
Some speculate that their original plan might have been to draft and develop a talented young quarterback under the guidance of Kevin O’Connell. This would follow a similar approach to how Andy Reid has developed quarterbacks.
If the Vikings didn’t fully guarantee two years to Cousins, they might have made an offer they knew he would reject. Their hope could have been to offer a fair deal and then see if someone else would offer more, which is what the Falcons did.
It’s possible that the Vikings were ready to move on from Cousins, especially considering that despite his arrival after an NFC Championship appearance, he only led the team to one playoff win in six seasons. Whatever their intentions, they got what they wanted. In a month, we’ll see if they end up drafting a new quarterback in the first round.
