0 - 8: End That Streak!

[HappyViking]

‘A Great Opportunity’ Awaits Cousins & Vikings on ‘MNF’

Eric Smith

Team Reporter

EAGAN, Minn. — Kirk Cousins anticipated the
question was coming, even if it happened to be the very final one
Thursday morning at his weekly podium session in the Vikings locker
room.



It’s public knowledge that Cousins has never won on Monday Night Football, posting an 0-8 record between his time in Minnesota and Washington.



And with the Vikings set for the final Monday night game of the
2019 season, it’s only natural the topic would come up again. Especially
with the Vikings Week 16 contest coming at home and against their
biggest rival in a game that features two teams with 10-plus wins and
big-time playoff implications.



“Yeah, I’d love to get a win for a lot of reasons. Hopefully we can
get that done,” Cousins said. “It is what it is. Can’t change the past
but we certainly have a great opportunity Monday night.”



Vikings Head Coach Mike Zimmer was also asked about Cousins’ record
so far. He brushed off the notion that one player has a bigger hand
than any other in determining the outcome of a game.



“Kirk has done a great job for us this year. He’s been outstanding,
he’s played great all year long,” Zimmer said. “If we get beat on
Monday night, it’s not going to be because of Kirk Cousins. It’s because
we didn’t win as a team.



“When we’ve won games this year, it hasn’t been because of Kirk …
even though he’s played good, but we’ve won as a team. So we’re just
going to stick to that mantra, that that is who we are and how we do
things here,” Zimmer added. “Hopefully he has a great game and hopefully
we win, but it’s not all on him. We have 21 other players, and they
have to go out and execute just as much as he does. But unfortunately,
[he] and I get all the blame.”



A deeper dive into Cousins’ history on Monday night shows that perhaps the quarterback isn’t to be blamed.



He has completed 191 of 292 passes (65.4 percent) for 2,153 yards
with 11 touchdowns and five interceptions, and his passer rating is 92.7
in those games.

Cousins’ first four starts on Monday Night Football were
all at home with Washington, but they came when he was either not the
full-time starter, or in his first or second season as a starting
quarterback.



Cousins, like most NFL players, has progressed over the years and improved overall as a player.



Yet unfortunately for him, his past four starts on Monday Night Football
have not only been on the road, but have taken place in Kansas City,
Philadelphia and Seattle (twice) — three places generally regarded as
some of the toughest to win at in the NFL, no matter the day.



In the 2017 game against the Chiefs, Kansas City’s defense scored
on the final play of the game to make the 29-20 score look more lopsided
than it was.



Cousins also lost in Philadelphia in 2017, which was the same year the Eagles won the Super Bowl.

[Guest]

And Cousins and the Vikings have dropped back-to-back Monday night
affairs in 2018 and 2019 in Seattle. While the entire offense struggled
in 2018, Cousins threw for 257 yards and a pair of scores with an
interception that hit off his receiver’s hand earlier this month.


To Zimmer’s point above, Cousins certainly wasn’t the reason
Minnesota couldn’t find a rare road win in Seattle. But the quarterback
knows the criticism will come his way regardless of the outcome.



“I just go out and play. There have been games where the stat line
wasn’t the best, but I knew I played really well,” Cousins said. “There
have been games we’ve lost where I said, ‘I’m playing my best football.’
There are games where we’ve won, and it just wasn’t good enough by the
quarterback position.



“It’s always a work in progress, and I don’t really like putting my
stake in the ground and saying something or other about my
performance,” Cousins added. “I do think the longer you play, the more
comfortable you get in a system, the more comfortable you get with
teammates, the better you can make decisions in split seconds [like]
whether to check the ball down or take the deep shot, throw it away,
avoid a sack. The longer you play, the better of a feel you have for
that. You’re always chasing playing better and better; it’s a work in
progress.”






Cousins has been plenty good in 2019. He has completed 291 of 413
passes (70.5 percent) for 3,481 yards with 25 touchdowns and five
interceptions. His passer rating of 111.1 ranks third in the NFL.



That wasn’t enough to get him selected to the initial Pro Bowl roster, much to Dalvin Cook’s disappointment.



“A lot of guys didn’t get in there. I feel like a lot of guys got
snubbed,” Cook said. “You know, I don’t think Kirk is a guy who plays
for stuff like that; he just likes to win football games, and that’s a
lot of the guys in the locker room.



“But I would have loved for Kirk to have been one of those first selections,” Cook added.



Cousins was indifferent to the idea of not getting selected to the Pro Bowl, praising to top-heavy crop of NFC quarterbacks.



But it was clear anyway that Cousins is locked in on beating the
Packers and not just because it would quiet the naysayers about his
record on Monday night.



With the Vikings sitting at 10-4, they could be playing for a spot
in the playoffs and the opportunity to stay alive in the NFC North race.



Cousins wants a win in the worst way, but not because it would help his own image.



“Big game this week. Great opportunity and great to be back at
home,” Cousins said. “Got a good football team coming here to play us,
and we’re going to have to have a good week of practice to be ready to
go.



“I’m excited for the challenge,” Cousins added.

[Guest]

 I'm as guilty as anyone for using past statistics to color the current day.

Tough to lay that solely at his feet though.

That said I'm sure Cousins would like to send this one to the dumpster during this year of re-writing the KC narrative.

 

[Guest]

On one had, you have the ultimate team sport...on the other hand you have the single most impactful position in sports...

This is a real chicken and the egg question....

[Guest]

right now it’s Vikings 0 Packers 0.

roll up the sleeves guys, its ass kickin’ time

[Guest]

I'm all for Cousins breaking the streak, and the Vikings winning (as always)...

...but I'm a realist, and until Cousins gets the MNF win total improved markedly and gets multiple postseason wins, sports bobbleheads will trot out those stats every time he's discussed.  He'll arguably have to win 8 MNF games (with no more losses) before they let him off the hook.

[Guest]

Here’s a streak I like better:  B) 

EAGAN, Minn. — The stage is set for the Vikings biggest game of the regular season.
The twice-annual games between Minnesota and Green Bay always carry a high level of intensity, but there seems to be an added layer for this one.
For starters, both the Vikings (10-4) and Packers (11-3) are fighting for playoff positioning. Minnesota could have a playoff spot clinched (that happens with a Rams loss tonight), but the Vikings also want to stay keep their NFC North title hopes afloat.
Green Bay can clinch the division and keep a first-round bye in play with a victory.


 And if the heated rivalry wasn’t enough, the game is also on Monday Night Football at U.S. Bank Stadium, a venue where that Vikings are 6-1 in primetime games since the building opened in 2016
. Minnesota is 2-0 under the lights against Green Bay at U.S. Bank Stadium, and the Vikings have beaten the Packers in all three meetings in the building.




https://www.vikings.com/news/the-skinny-post-vikings-and-packers-set-for-showdown-on-monday-night