Kevin O’Connell: Too early to commit wholeheartedly to Kirk Cousins starting Sunday

The Minnesota Vikings traded one of their two 2027 third-round draft picks to the Las Vegas Raiders for quarterback Kirk Cousins, completing the deal shortly before Tuesday's deadline. General Manager Nolan Teasley and Head Coach Kevin O'Connell addressed reporters Wednesday at the team's performance center in Eagan. Teasley said Cousins "made sense for a lot of reasons" including familiarity with the offense, the organization, the coaching staff, his level of play and his production this season. O'Connell added, "We're trying to do everything we can to become the best version of our team this year."

Cousins, who played for Minnesota from 2018 to 2023 before tearing his Achilles against Green Bay on Oct. 29, 2023, has started nine games for the Raiders in 2026. He ranks second in the NFL in passing touchdowns with 20, fifth in yards with 2,340 and 11th in passer rating at 97.1. Teasley said he saw "a live arm" on tape, citing "touch, placement, accuracy, an effective athlete who can execute the elements of our system." O'Connell noted Cousins is "moving well, fundamentals and all those things look sharp as ever, and he's been really accurate like he always has been."

O'Connell declined to name Cousins the starter for Sunday's game at Lambeau Field against the Packers, saying he wants to be fair to Cousins and make certain he feels good about the short turnaround. He described Cousins as "really smart" with "a lot of things come back quickly to him," and pointed out overlap between the Raiders' play-action passing phase and movement game and the Vikings' scheme. O'Connell also highlighted Cousins' "power of completions" approach, saying, "When there's completions to be had, he's going to find them."

The Vikings are 6-2 and lead the NFC North. Kyler Murray is week-to-week with a hamstring injury that sidelined him for Monday night's loss, and Carson Wentz suffered an ankle injury in that game. O'Connell said he is "hopeful that Carson can get to a place where he can be the No. 2 (behind Cousins)" and praised rookie Max Brosmer's late-game performance. The team did not practice Wednesday; participation levels were estimates with Murray not participating and Wentz listed as limited.