It’s Simply Wrong To Blame Zimmer For Cousins’ Failures With Minnesota Vikings

The trashing of the previous regime is a familiar path taken by a large number of NFL teams. Whenever a head coach and/or a general manager get fired, stories start to surface about certain unfair aspects of leadership or blatant problem areas begin to surface.

As the Minnesota Vikings prepare for the 2022 season with a new general manager in Kwesi Adofo-Mensah and a first-year head coach in Kevin O’Connell, past problems with the previous regime of general manager Rick Spielman and head coach Mike Zimmer have spilled out.

Ex-Viking linebacker Ben Leber, who is still associated with the team as their radio sideline reporter, has stated that Zimmer’s dislike of quarterback Kirk Cousins was well known and that factor played a key role in the way that Cousins comported himself both in games and day-to-day activities with the team.

“I mean, It’s not like I’m not breaking news here that Mike Zimmer did not like Kirk Cousins,” Leber told Zach Gelb of CBS Radio. “And I think that showed in the way that Kirk behaved and the way that he carried himself. The team was never given to him, or he was never allowed to earn the trust of the team, because the head coach I think just didn’t like him.”

There have been several issues with the Vikings in the last two seasons, and the shoddy display by the team’s defense may have been just as responsible for the team’s downfall as problems with Cousins at quarterback.

While Cousins has his defenders, the idea that Zimmer had a personal disdain for his quarterback simply makes no sense. Zimmer may have had a problem with the quarterback, but it had to do with his performance on the field in big games against top opponents.

When it became time for Cousins to step up and take charge of a game against the Green Bay Packers, San Francisco 49ers or any other team with strong playoff aspirations, he simply did not come through with any consistency.

Every Viking fan who has observed Cousins throughout his four-year tenure with the team knows that the quarterback has struggled badly when the Vikings have faced a majority of their biggest games.

Those who have followed Cousins throughout his NFL career prior to his arrival in Minnesota can attest to the same thing. Cousins used to flash his talent as quarterback of the Washington franchise, but he lacked an edge in key games for that team. That’s why Washington was willing to part company with him after the 2017 season, even though he completed 347 of 540 passes for 4,093 yards with a flashy 27-5 TD-interception ratio.

Those numbers and the ones that have followed in Minnesota indicate a quarterback who should be helping his team advance deep into the playoffs. But that’s not what has happened.

Here’s an example from last season. Going into the Week 8 game at home against the Dallas Cowboys, the Vikings had won two games in a row and three of four to reach the .500 mark. The Vikings had momentum against an underdog opponent, but Cousins could only throw for 188 yards with one touchdown and an 88.3 passer rating.

The Vikings dropped a 20-16 decision and all of their momentum dissipated. A loss to the Baltimore Ravens followed, and the Vikings were once again trying to play catch-up.

Surprising wins over the Los Angeles Chargers and Packers followed, but instead of making good on their opportunity to relaunch, the Vikings lost the next two games to the Niners and the Detroit Lions (winless at the time). Cousins was mediocre in both of those game.

So, how could Zimmer not be frustrated with Cousins? He was in his fourth season with Cousins under center and after spending a lifetime in football, he knew exactly what he was dealing with.

Can O’Connell give Cousins a better working environment and treat him with more ’Atta boys than Zimmer? Certainly.

But at one point or another, Cousins is going to have to come up with something else besides impressive stats and eye-opening performances every so often. Winning is the bottom line in the NFL for top quarterbacks, and Cousins has failed in that area for 10 years.

Even with a new coaching regime, it’s difficult to see Cousins making anything more than a nominal improvement. It doesn’t matter how much the coach likes him. He has to perform when the money is on the table, and that’s been his biggest problem in the NFL.