Exploring one NFL exec’s claim that Kirk Cousins is ‘not a finisher’
When the Minnesota Vikings signed Kirk Cousins to a three-year contract with $84 million, it sparked a debate over the former Washington quarterback’s statistics and win-loss record.
While he has three straight 4,000-yard seasons, Cousins went just 24-23-1 with one playoff loss after winning the starting job in 2015.
In a recent piece grading NFL teams’ offseasons, ESPN’s Mike Sando quoted several NFL executives talking about the Vikings’ decision to go all-in on Cousins.
One NFL executive said:
“He was not a finisher at Michigan State and he is not a finisher in the league.”
The comment brings about an interesting question: How would we go about defining someone who is a “finisher?”
Does that cover all important situations? Does it mean he gets his team to the finish line when they are ahead? Or that he rises to the occasion when his team is losing?
http://www.1500espn.com/vikings-2/2018/06/exploring-one-nfl-execs-claim-kirk-cousins-not-finisher/
Hurry-up Vikings, we ain't getting any younger!
@"Sir Viking Bob VWO" said:@"JimmyinSD" said:proof that capn Kirk is indeed a finisher....
I wonder if that was in the 2 minute offense???
hed probably tell you it was from a shotgun formation... but most men dont want to admit they are really only effective from under center.
@"MaroonBells" said: That's a pretty interesting article. I'm very excited about what Cousins will bring to this very talented roster, but I can't help but feel like someone is twisting a knife somewhere in my gut when I read that he was 39th of 46 qualifiers in red zone accuracy...knowing that the NFL's #1 ranked QB in red zone accuracy was not Manning or Brady or Brees, but young Teddy Bridgewater...as a rookie. He was 1st that year in accuracy under pressure also. Then the following year ranked #1 on PFF's total accuracy rankings.Bridge, water and all that...
We won't need a red-zone offense this year. Cousins will be dropping bomb after bomb on other teams from 50 yards out... and Cook will never get tackled. Shoot, we might not even need a punter this year... B)
@"JimmyinSD" said:@"Sir Viking Bob VWO" said:@"JimmyinSD" said:proof that capn Kirk is indeed a finisher....
I wonder if that was in the 2 minute offense???
hed probably tell you it was from a shotgun formation... but most men dont want to admit they are really only effective from under center.
I wish he went for two and not kicked the extra point... thats what the wife said
@"pumpf" said:@"MaroonBells" said: That's a pretty interesting article. I'm very excited about what Cousins will bring to this very talented roster, but I can't help but feel like someone is twisting a knife somewhere in my gut when I read that he was 39th of 46 qualifiers in red zone accuracy...knowing that the NFL's #1 ranked QB in red zone accuracy was not Manning or Brady or Brees, but young Teddy Bridgewater...as a rookie. He was 1st that year in accuracy under pressure also. Then the following year ranked #1 on PFF's total accuracy rankings.Bridge, water and all that...
We won't need a red-zone offense this year. Cousins will be dropping bomb after bomb on other teams from 50 yards out... and Cook will never get tackled. Shoot, we might not even need a punter this year... B)
I wouldn't go that far. But we will go 19-0.
@"Sir Viking Bob VWO" said:@"JimmyinSD" said:@"Sir Viking Bob VWO" said:@"JimmyinSD" said:proof that capn Kirk is indeed a finisher....
I wonder if that was in the 2 minute offense???
hed probably tell you it was from a shotgun formation... but most men dont want to admit they are really only effective from under center.
I wish he went for two and not kicked the extra point... thats what the wife saidMy guess is that it was to a Tight End.
@"ThunderGod" said:@"Sir Viking Bob VWO" said:@"JimmyinSD" said:@"Sir Viking Bob VWO" said:@"JimmyinSD" said:proof that capn Kirk is indeed a finisher....
I wonder if that was in the 2 minute offense???
hed probably tell you it was from a shotgun formation... but most men dont want to admit they are really only effective from under center.
I wish he went for two and not kicked the extra point... thats what the wife saidMy guess is that it was to a Tight End.
I'm sure they are putting in extra time on the field to help that tight end become a wide receiver....
@"MaroonBells" said:@"greediron" said:@"MaroonBells" said: That's a pretty interesting article. I'm very excited about what Cousins will bring to this very talented roster, but I can't help but feel like someone is twisting a knife somewhere in my gut when I read that he was 39th of 46 qualifiers in red zone accuracy...knowing that the NFL's #1 ranked QB in red zone accuracy was not Manning or Brady or Brees, but young Teddy Bridgewater...as a rookie. He was 1st that year in accuracy under pressure also. Then the following year ranked #1 on PFF's total accuracy rankings.Bridge, water and all that...
Yeah water gone by, but that was one area that I really was excited for watching TB. He was spot on when it counted. Late in games and in the red zone.
The arrow was definitely blinking, red, neon and pointing up. We handled that perfectly. Eased him in, let him manage a run offense. 100% convinced he was going to explode in '16 when we took the training wheels off.
Yup, 2016 was training wheels off and the Vikings did a really nice job easing him in. With the benefit of hindsight now, the Teddy Bridgewater chapter of Vikings lore is a sad one indeed.Lady Luck can be a real bitch...
@"HappyViking" said: Last off season the Vikings signed a backup QB scrub for nearly league minimum by the name of Case Keenum. Once he was forced to start, everyone waited and waited for him to fail (myself included). But he didn't. The supporting cast around him along with his work ethic and excellent coaching staff made him not only sucessful, but a very weathly FA QB this off season.If Case can turn his career around and flourish with this Vikings offense, I have no reason to believe that Kirk can't do the same. As a matter of fact, I think we all expect Kirk to exceed the great play of Case's 2017 season.
Look at the scrub backup that became the SB MVP. Experts also kept waiting for Foles to suck and play poorly. That didn't happen, and he not only whipped our Vikings, but he beat the great HOF Brady and the Pats.
I think this proves it doesn't really matter what Kirk did with the Redskins. It's a new chapter in his career.
It will be interesting to see if your expectations, along with many others, come true. I dont think it is a slam dunk as many others do mainly because of the difference in skill sets between Keenum and Cousins and Cousins weaknesses in his game as highlighted in this article.
It seems strange that the normally conservative Vikings front office would take such a large flyer in the form if a record breaking guarenteed contract for QB that isnt elite and elt the three veterans they have on staff go. It seems to be a case of if we pay him like a tier 1 franchise guy hopefully he will play like one.
This is one of the strangest stories in NFL history that I can recall.
I hope that it all works out and they can design an offense and call a game that will allow Cousins to flourish. It is going to be interesting as heck.
Thought we were discussing whether Kirk can finish not Teddy get started. I too was watching in hopes of seeing if Teddy would take that next step. Then he got hurt. Since then we had 2 QB's come in and play at levels this team hadn't seen in years. In the 2 years Teddy's thrown 2 live fire shots. 1 went to the wrong team. If Teddy makes that next step good for him. Sadly I have to admit part of me hopes he doesn't. Selfish of me but I just don't want to hear about how badly we blew it. Cousins could just make it a moot point. Kirk's job now is to do better then the previous 2 not 3 ago.
@"Poiple" said:@"HappyViking" said: Last off season the Vikings signed a backup QB scrub for nearly league minimum by the name of Case Keenum. Once he was forced to start, everyone waited and waited for him to fail (myself included). But he didn't. The supporting cast around him along with his work ethic and excellent coaching staff made him not only sucessful, but a very weathly FA QB this off season.If Case can turn his career around and flourish with this Vikings offense, I have no reason to believe that Kirk can't do the same. As a matter of fact, I think we all expect Kirk to exceed the great play of Case's 2017 season.
Look at the scrub backup that became the SB MVP. Experts also kept waiting for Foles to suck and play poorly. That didn't happen, and he not only whipped our Vikings, but he beat the great HOF Brady and the Pats.
I think this proves it doesn't really matter what Kirk did with the Redskins. It's a new chapter in his career.
It will be interesting to see if your expectations, along with many others, come true. I dont think it is a slam dunk as many others do mainly because of the difference in skill sets between Keenum and Cousins and Cousins weaknesses in his game as highlighted in this article.
It seems strange that the normally conservative Vikings front office would take such a large flyer in the form if a record breaking guarenteed contract for QB that isnt elite and elt the three veterans they have on staff go. It seems to be a case of if we pay him like a tier 1 franchise guy hopefully he will play like one.
This is one of the strangest stories in NFL history that I can recall.
I hope that it all works out and they can design an offense and call a game that will allow Cousins to flourish. It is going to be interesting as heck.
I didnt see it as strange. I actually expected it after the playoff dust settled.A gamble? It's subjective as to how much of a gamble it is.
The promise is his potential with this surround
Loved what Case did at times, but I understand the Vikings mantra of go big or go home with the Cousins signing.
Reminiscent of Favre but now a younger guy, longer runway and I think a better overall surround than Favre had too.
Sam after coming to the Vikes turns in a career year for himself
Case after coming to the Vikes turns in a (by far) career best year for himself
I dont understand why Kirk couldnt do the same thing himself with a much better D holding the other team in check, a much better running game, and equal or better receivers than he ever had in DC. sure he is statistically weaker in some areas, but he is significantly stronger in other areas which should at a minimum average themselves out. I look at it this way... Flipper could basically pick his job this year and he came here knowing that KC will be his QB. Cousins will be the QB that Flipper has hitched his next upward coaching move to... not the guys that he had in Philly, he came here to coach an offense led by Kirk Cousins.
I wasnt a fan of the contract that we gave Cousins, I still think its to much for one position in a game of attrition, but the rules favoring the position so heavily kind of force the unbalances in the cap distribution. but its done so .... let roll.
@"Poiple" said:@"HappyViking" said: Last off season the Vikings signed a backup QB scrub for nearly league minimum by the name of Case Keenum. Once he was forced to start, everyone waited and waited for him to fail (myself included). But he didn't. The supporting cast around him along with his work ethic and excellent coaching staff made him not only sucessful, but a very weathly FA QB this off season.If Case can turn his career around and flourish with this Vikings offense, I have no reason to believe that Kirk can't do the same. As a matter of fact, I think we all expect Kirk to exceed the great play of Case's 2017 season.
Look at the scrub backup that became the SB MVP. Experts also kept waiting for Foles to suck and play poorly. That didn't happen, and he not only whipped our Vikings, but he beat the great HOF Brady and the Pats.
I think this proves it doesn't really matter what Kirk did with the Redskins. It's a new chapter in his career.
It will be interesting to see if your expectations, along with many others, come true. I dont think it is a slam dunk as many others do mainly because of the difference in skill sets between Keenum and Cousins and Cousins weaknesses in his game as highlighted in this article.
It seems strange that the normally conservative Vikings front office would take such a large flyer in the form if a record breaking guarenteed contract for QB that isnt elite and elt the three veterans they have on staff go. It seems to be a case of if we pay him like a tier 1 franchise guy hopefully he will play like one.
This is one of the strangest stories in NFL history that I can recall.
I hope that it all works out and they can design an offense and call a game that will allow Cousins to flourish. It is going to be interesting as heck.
I think it's a little bit more than a "flyer." We're talking about a guy who has as many 4,000 yard seasons as the number of Viking QBs who've reached that mark in their 57 year history. And for a team that has seen its playoff hopes dashed by injuries to nearly every QB it has trotted out the last 10 years (Favre, Ponder, Cassel, Bridgewater, Bradford), it's also worth nothing that Cousins has started 48 of his last 48 games.No, of course it's not a slam dunk. There will be a learning curve for everyone in the new offense. And like all QBs not named Brady, Rodgers or Brees, Cousins does have weaknesses. But for a team wanting to get to the next level, upgrading Keenum and moving on from two huge injury concerns, signing Cousins, even at that price, was the best move they could've made. And in a couple of years, I doubt that contract will rank among the top 10.
@"Poiple" said:@"HappyViking" said: Last off season the Vikings signed a backup QB scrub for nearly league minimum by the name of Case Keenum. Once he was forced to start, everyone waited and waited for him to fail (myself included). But he didn't. The supporting cast around him along with his work ethic and excellent coaching staff made him not only sucessful, but a very weathly FA QB this off season.If Case can turn his career around and flourish with this Vikings offense, I have no reason to believe that Kirk can't do the same. As a matter of fact, I think we all expect Kirk to exceed the great play of Case's 2017 season.
Look at the scrub backup that became the SB MVP. Experts also kept waiting for Foles to suck and play poorly. That didn't happen, and he not only whipped our Vikings, but he beat the great HOF Brady and the Pats.
I think this proves it doesn't really matter what Kirk did with the Redskins. It's a new chapter in his career.
It will be interesting to see if your expectations, along with many others, come true. I dont think it is a slam dunk as many others do mainly because of the difference in skill sets between Keenum and Cousins and Cousins weaknesses in his game as highlighted in this article.
It seems strange that the normally conservative Vikings front office would take such a large flyer in the form if a record breaking guarenteed contract for QB that isnt elite and elt the three veterans they have on staff go. It seems to be a case of if we pay him like a tier 1 franchise guy hopefully he will play like one.
This is one of the strangest stories in NFL history that I can recall.
I hope that it all works out and they can design an offense and call a game that will allow Cousins to flourish. It is going to be interesting as heck.
I don't think it is a strange story at all. The Vikings Brass think he is a franchise QB and paid him like one. You don't think he is a franchise QB so you find it strange? I am happy this organization makes decisions and has the support of ownership to get things like bringing in Cousins done.
@"minny65" said:@"Poiple" said:@"HappyViking" said: Last off season the Vikings signed a backup QB scrub for nearly league minimum by the name of Case Keenum. Once he was forced to start, everyone waited and waited for him to fail (myself included). But he didn't. The supporting cast around him along with his work ethic and excellent coaching staff made him not only sucessful, but a very weathly FA QB this off season.If Case can turn his career around and flourish with this Vikings offense, I have no reason to believe that Kirk can't do the same. As a matter of fact, I think we all expect Kirk to exceed the great play of Case's 2017 season.
Look at the scrub backup that became the SB MVP. Experts also kept waiting for Foles to suck and play poorly. That didn't happen, and he not only whipped our Vikings, but he beat the great HOF Brady and the Pats.
I think this proves it doesn't really matter what Kirk did with the Redskins. It's a new chapter in his career.
It will be interesting to see if your expectations, along with many others, come true. I dont think it is a slam dunk as many others do mainly because of the difference in skill sets between Keenum and Cousins and Cousins weaknesses in his game as highlighted in this article.
It seems strange that the normally conservative Vikings front office would take such a large flyer in the form if a record breaking guarenteed contract for QB that isnt elite and elt the three veterans they have on staff go. It seems to be a case of if we pay him like a tier 1 franchise guy hopefully he will play like one.
This is one of the strangest stories in NFL history that I can recall.
I hope that it all works out and they can design an offense and call a game that will allow Cousins to flourish. It is going to be interesting as heck.
I don't think it is a strange story at all. The Vikings Brass think he is a franchise QB and paid him like one. You don't think he is a franchise QB so you find it strange? I am happy this organization makes decisions and has the support of ownership to get things like bringing in Cousins done.His previous team didnt want him and the Vikes paid a record amount AND guarenteed it! If you dont find that strange then nothing will.
@"Poiple" said:@"HappyViking" said: Last off season the Vikings signed a backup QB scrub for nearly league minimum by the name of Case Keenum. Once he was forced to start, everyone waited and waited for him to fail (myself included). But he didn't. The supporting cast around him along with his work ethic and excellent coaching staff made him not only sucessful, but a very weathly FA QB this off season.If Case can turn his career around and flourish with this Vikings offense, I have no reason to believe that Kirk can't do the same. As a matter of fact, I think we all expect Kirk to exceed the great play of Case's 2017 season.
Look at the scrub backup that became the SB MVP. Experts also kept waiting for Foles to suck and play poorly. That didn't happen, and he not only whipped our Vikings, but he beat the great HOF Brady and the Pats.
I think this proves it doesn't really matter what Kirk did with the Redskins. It's a new chapter in his career.
It will be interesting to see if your expectations, along with many others, come true. I dont think it is a slam dunk as many others do mainly because of the difference in skill sets between Keenum and Cousins and Cousins weaknesses in his game as highlighted in this article.
It seems strange that the normally conservative Vikings front office would take such a large flyer in the form if a record breaking guarenteed contract for QB that isnt elite and elt the three veterans they have on staff go. It seems to be a case of if we pay him like a tier 1 franchise guy hopefully he will play like one.
This is one of the strangest stories in NFL history that I can recall.
I hope that it all works out and they can design an offense and call a game that will allow Cousins to flourish. It is going to be interesting as heck.
It shows how important getting a QB is to a team that they feel is ready to compete for a Superbowl otherwise. Did they overpay? Yep. But there was something they saw in Keenum that they decided to pass on after a whole year of witnessing him up close and the success the team had. We'll see if it was the right move with Cousins.I'm excited about the possibilities, but to your point, I'm a little worried at the same time. What else is new as a Viking's fan?
@"Poiple" said:@"minny65" said:@"Poiple" said:@"HappyViking" said: Last off season the Vikings signed a backup QB scrub for nearly league minimum by the name of Case Keenum. Once he was forced to start, everyone waited and waited for him to fail (myself included). But he didn't. The supporting cast around him along with his work ethic and excellent coaching staff made him not only sucessful, but a very weathly FA QB this off season.If Case can turn his career around and flourish with this Vikings offense, I have no reason to believe that Kirk can't do the same. As a matter of fact, I think we all expect Kirk to exceed the great play of Case's 2017 season.
Look at the scrub backup that became the SB MVP. Experts also kept waiting for Foles to suck and play poorly. That didn't happen, and he not only whipped our Vikings, but he beat the great HOF Brady and the Pats.
I think this proves it doesn't really matter what Kirk did with the Redskins. It's a new chapter in his career.
It will be interesting to see if your expectations, along with many others, come true. I dont think it is a slam dunk as many others do mainly because of the difference in skill sets between Keenum and Cousins and Cousins weaknesses in his game as highlighted in this article.
It seems strange that the normally conservative Vikings front office would take such a large flyer in the form if a record breaking guarenteed contract for QB that isnt elite and elt the three veterans they have on staff go. It seems to be a case of if we pay him like a tier 1 franchise guy hopefully he will play like one.
This is one of the strangest stories in NFL history that I can recall.
I hope that it all works out and they can design an offense and call a game that will allow Cousins to flourish. It is going to be interesting as heck.
I don't think it is a strange story at all. The Vikings Brass think he is a franchise QB and paid him like one. You don't think he is a franchise QB so you find it strange? I am happy this organization makes decisions and has the support of ownership to get things like bringing in Cousins done.His previous team didnt want him and the Vikes paid a record amount AND guarenteed it! If you dont find that strange then nothing will.
They franchised him for 2 years and you say they didn't want him? I think you might be reading the tea leaves wrong, it was capn Kirk that didn't want the redskins as was evident by them continually trying to get him to sign a long term deal.
@"Poiple" said:@"minny65" said:@"Poiple" said:@"HappyViking" said: Last off season the Vikings signed a backup QB scrub for nearly league minimum by the name of Case Keenum. Once he was forced to start, everyone waited and waited for him to fail (myself included). But he didn't. The supporting cast around him along with his work ethic and excellent coaching staff made him not only sucessful, but a very weathly FA QB this off season.If Case can turn his career around and flourish with this Vikings offense, I have no reason to believe that Kirk can't do the same. As a matter of fact, I think we all expect Kirk to exceed the great play of Case's 2017 season.
Look at the scrub backup that became the SB MVP. Experts also kept waiting for Foles to suck and play poorly. That didn't happen, and he not only whipped our Vikings, but he beat the great HOF Brady and the Pats.
I think this proves it doesn't really matter what Kirk did with the Redskins. It's a new chapter in his career.
It will be interesting to see if your expectations, along with many others, come true. I dont think it is a slam dunk as many others do mainly because of the difference in skill sets between Keenum and Cousins and Cousins weaknesses in his game as highlighted in this article.
It seems strange that the normally conservative Vikings front office would take such a large flyer in the form if a record breaking guarenteed contract for QB that isnt elite and elt the three veterans they have on staff go. It seems to be a case of if we pay him like a tier 1 franchise guy hopefully he will play like one.
This is one of the strangest stories in NFL history that I can recall.
I hope that it all works out and they can design an offense and call a game that will allow Cousins to flourish. It is going to be interesting as heck.
I don't think it is a strange story at all. The Vikings Brass think he is a franchise QB and paid him like one. You don't think he is a franchise QB so you find it strange? I am happy this organization makes decisions and has the support of ownership to get things like bringing in Cousins done.His previous team didnt want him and the Vikes paid a record amount AND guarenteed it! If you dont find that strange then nothing will.
the 49ers paid Jimmy G and McKinnon a ton of money and their previous teams didnt want them. supply and demand..
@"Poiple" said:@"minny65" said:@"Poiple" said:@"HappyViking" said: Last off season the Vikings signed a backup QB scrub for nearly league minimum by the name of Case Keenum. Once he was forced to start, everyone waited and waited for him to fail (myself included). But he didn't. The supporting cast around him along with his work ethic and excellent coaching staff made him not only sucessful, but a very weathly FA QB this off season.If Case can turn his career around and flourish with this Vikings offense, I have no reason to believe that Kirk can't do the same. As a matter of fact, I think we all expect Kirk to exceed the great play of Case's 2017 season.
Look at the scrub backup that became the SB MVP. Experts also kept waiting for Foles to suck and play poorly. That didn't happen, and he not only whipped our Vikings, but he beat the great HOF Brady and the Pats.
I think this proves it doesn't really matter what Kirk did with the Redskins. It's a new chapter in his career.
It will be interesting to see if your expectations, along with many others, come true. I dont think it is a slam dunk as many others do mainly because of the difference in skill sets between Keenum and Cousins and Cousins weaknesses in his game as highlighted in this article.
It seems strange that the normally conservative Vikings front office would take such a large flyer in the form if a record breaking guarenteed contract for QB that isnt elite and elt the three veterans they have on staff go. It seems to be a case of if we pay him like a tier 1 franchise guy hopefully he will play like one.
This is one of the strangest stories in NFL history that I can recall.
I hope that it all works out and they can design an offense and call a game that will allow Cousins to flourish. It is going to be interesting as heck.
I don't think it is a strange story at all. The Vikings Brass think he is a franchise QB and paid him like one. You don't think he is a franchise QB so you find it strange? I am happy this organization makes decisions and has the support of ownership to get things like bringing in Cousins done.His previous team didnt want him and the Vikes paid a record amount AND guarenteed it! If you dont find that strange then nothing will.
You won't budge from the fact the Redskins did want him but he would not sign with them. Like said above, they franchised him twice and he was pretty clear that he didn't want to play for them when the team GM didn't even know his first name.The Redskins are one of the poorest run teams there is and I am not shocked that they bungled their QB situation. Smith is not an upgrade and with that poor run game and defense he is in for a shock with that team...easily worst team in division this year with the vast improvement of the Giants.
The Redskins and others are about to learn that Cousins is a potential franchise QB and we paid him as such because our Brass thinks the same. His contract for this year is around 24 million and he will shortly be about the third or fourth highest paid QB. Plus in his third year he will probably be around the 10th highest paid QB - just the market for a potential franchise QB.
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