10 NFC predictions for Week 1 of 2018 NFL season
By Ian Wharton
1. Kirk Cousins will look the exact same
The Minnesota Vikings took one of the biggest swings we’ve ever seen in free agency by inking quarterback Kirk Cousins to a fully guaranteed $84 million deal. Cousins is a solid quarterback, but Vikings can’t bank on him transforming into a transcendant talent who will be more than the sum of the parts. His struggles in pressure situations with the Washington Redskins continually highlighted his shortcomings.
Cousins has always been an empty stats player. His 2017 situational play again reaffirmed this, as his passing splits when asked to throw 31 or more times led to a completion percentage of 59 percent, average completion depth of 6.5 yards, and only six touchdowns to four interceptions. He falls in love with checking down when he needs to create big plays.
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His end-of-half stats and splits in opposing red zones also dip dramatically. In the last two minutes of a half, he completed just 58 percent of passes, and the red zone saw just 52 percent completions. Tight passing windows and big moments are two areas where Cousins consistently falls short.
If the Vikings feel he needs to be dramatically different to be worth his contract, they’ll be let down. Week 1’s game against the 49ers won’t suddenly transform him into a reliable performer in the clutch situations he’ll eventually face.