Former Viking · 2018–2023
Kirk Cousins
Kirk Cousins started six seasons at quarterback for the Minnesota Vikings, from 2018 through 2023. He no longer plays for Minnesota. As of 12 September 2026 he is under contract with the Las Vegas Raiders, having agreed a deal with them in April 2026 after the Atlanta Falcons released him.
- Seasons in Minnesota
- 62018 through 2023
- Record as Vikings starter
- 50-37-188 starts, all six seasons
- Passing yards, Vikings
- 23,265on 2,093 of 3,081 passing
- Passing TDs, Vikings
- 171against 55 interceptions
- Completion %, Vikings
- 67.92,093 completions
- Passer rating, Vikings
- 101.2six-season average
Every Minnesota Season, 2018–2023
Cousins started all 88 games he played in a Vikings uniform. Every figure below is the regular-season passing line recorded by Pro Football Reference. QB record is the team's won-lost-tied mark in the games he started, which is not always the same as Minnesota's full-season record — both are shown.
| Season | Team | G | GS | QB record (W-L-T) | Cmp | Att | Cmp % | Yds | Y/A | TD | Int | Rate | Sk | How Minnesota's season ended |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2018 | MIN | 16 | 16 | 8-7-1 | 425 | 606 | 70.1 | 4,298 | 7.1 | 30 | 10 | 99.7 | 40 | Missed the playoffs (Vikings 8-7-1) |
| 2019 | MIN | 15 | 15 | 10-5-0 | 307 | 444 | 69.1 | 3,603 | 8.1 | 26 | 6 | 107.4 | 28 | Reached the divisional round (Vikings 10-6) |
| 2020 | MIN | 16 | 16 | 7-9-0 | 349 | 516 | 67.6 | 4,265 | 8.3 | 35 | 13 | 105.0 | 39 | Missed the playoffs (Vikings 7-9) |
| 2021 | MIN | 16 | 16 | 8-8-0 | 372 | 561 | 66.3 | 4,221 | 7.5 | 33 | 7 | 103.1 | 28 | Missed the playoffs (Vikings 8-9) |
| 2022 | MIN | 17 | 17 | 13-4-0 | 424 | 643 | 65.9 | 4,547 | 7.1 | 29 | 14 | 92.5 | 46 | Lost the wild-card round 31-24 to the Giants (Vikings 13-4) |
| 2023 | MIN | 8 | 8 | 4-4-0 | 216 | 311 | 69.5 | 2,331 | 7.5 | 18 | 5 | 103.8 | 17 | His season ended with a torn Achilles on 29 October; Minnesota finished 7-10 |
| Vikings total | MIN | 88 | 88 | 50-37-1 | 2,093 | 3,081 | 67.9 | 23,265 | 7.6 | 171 | 55 | 101.2 | 198 | Two playoff berths in six years |
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Passing statistics: Pro Football Reference, Kirk Cousins. Minnesota's full-season records: List of Minnesota Vikings seasons.
Playoff Record With Minnesota
Cousins took the Vikings to the playoffs twice in six seasons and started three postseason games for the franchise, going 1-2.
| Season | Team | G | GS | QB record (W-L-T) | Cmp | Att | Cmp % | Yds | TD | Int | Rate | Result |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2019 | MIN | 2 | 2 | 1-1-0 | 40 | 60 | 66.7 | 414 | 2 | 1 | 90.6 | Won at New Orleans 26-20 in overtime, then lost at San Francisco 27-10 |
| 2022 | MIN | 1 | 1 | 0-1-0 | 31 | 39 | 79.5 | 273 | 2 | 0 | 112.9 | Lost the home wild-card game to the Giants 31-24 |
| Vikings total | MIN | 3 | 3 | 1-2-0 | 71 | 99 | 71.7 | 687 | 4 | 1 | 100.0 | One postseason win in a Vikings uniform |
Postseason passing statistics: Pro Football Reference, Kirk Cousins.
Where the Vikings Years Sit in His Career
Fourteen NFL seasons through 2025, across three franchises. Rows marked MIN in the team column are his Minnesota years; the shaded band is a visual aid only, and the team abbreviation carries the same information in text.
| Season | Team | G | GS | QB record (W-L-T) | Cmp | Att | Cmp % | Yds | TD | Int | Rate |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2012 | WAS | 3 | 1 | 1-0-0 | 33 | 48 | 68.8 | 466 | 4 | 3 | 101.6 |
| 2013 | WAS | 5 | 3 | 0-3-0 | 81 | 155 | 52.3 | 854 | 4 | 7 | 58.4 |
| 2014 | WAS | 6 | 5 | 1-4-0 | 126 | 204 | 61.8 | 1,710 | 10 | 9 | 86.4 |
| 2015 | WAS | 16 | 16 | 9-7-0 | 379 | 543 | 69.8 | 4,166 | 29 | 11 | 101.6 |
| 2016 | WAS | 16 | 16 | 8-7-1 | 406 | 606 | 67.0 | 4,917 | 25 | 12 | 97.2 |
| 2017 | WAS | 16 | 16 | 7-9-0 | 347 | 540 | 64.3 | 4,093 | 27 | 13 | 93.9 |
| 2018 | MIN | 16 | 16 | 8-7-1 | 425 | 606 | 70.1 | 4,298 | 30 | 10 | 99.7 |
| 2019 | MIN | 15 | 15 | 10-5-0 | 307 | 444 | 69.1 | 3,603 | 26 | 6 | 107.4 |
| 2020 | MIN | 16 | 16 | 7-9-0 | 349 | 516 | 67.6 | 4,265 | 35 | 13 | 105.0 |
| 2021 | MIN | 16 | 16 | 8-8-0 | 372 | 561 | 66.3 | 4,221 | 33 | 7 | 103.1 |
| 2022 | MIN | 17 | 17 | 13-4-0 | 424 | 643 | 65.9 | 4,547 | 29 | 14 | 92.5 |
| 2023 | MIN | 8 | 8 | 4-4-0 | 216 | 311 | 69.5 | 2,331 | 18 | 5 | 103.8 |
| 2024 | ATL | 14 | 14 | 7-7-0 | 303 | 453 | 66.9 | 3,508 | 18 | 16 | 88.6 |
| 2025 | ATL | 10 | 8 | 5-3-0 | 166 | 269 | 61.7 | 1,721 | 10 | 5 | 84.8 |
| Minnesota, 6 yrs | MIN | 88 | 88 | 50-37-1 | 2,093 | 3,081 | 67.9 | 23,265 | 171 | 55 | 101.2 |
| Washington, 6 yrs | WAS | 62 | 57 | 26-30-1 | 1,372 | 2,096 | 65.5 | 16,206 | 99 | 55 | 93.7 |
| Atlanta, 2 yrs | ATL | 24 | 22 | 12-10-0 | 469 | 722 | 65.0 | 5,229 | 28 | 21 | 87.2 |
| Career, 14 yrs | All teams | 174 | 167 | 88-77-2 | 3,934 | 5,899 | 66.7 | 44,700 | 298 | 131 | 96.8 |
Career table: Pro Football Reference, Kirk Cousins. Totals run through the 2025 season.
The Six Seasons, in Short
How he arrived
Cousins came to Minnesota from Washington, who had drafted him in the fourth round in 2012 and played him on the franchise tag in his final two seasons there. He reached free agency in 2018 and the Vikings signed him on 15 March 2018 to a three-year, $84 million contract that was fully guaranteed — at the time the largest fully guaranteed deal in NFL history. He later signed extensions and remained the starter through 2023.
2022: thirteen wins, and one that got away
The 2022 season was the high point of the Cousins era. Minnesota finished 13-4, won the NFC North in Kevin O'Connell's first year as head coach, and set an NFL record by going 11-0 in one-score games during the regular season. Pro Football Reference credits Cousins with eight game-winning drives and eight fourth-quarter comebacks that year, both career highs.
The record did not survive January. The Vikings lost their home wild-card game to the New York Giants 31-24 — their first one-score defeat of the season — and the year ended in the first round. Cousins completed 31 of 39 passes for 273 yards and two touchdowns in the loss.
2023: the Achilles injury
On 29 October 2023, in a 24-10 win at Green Bay, Cousins tore his right Achilles tendon in the fourth quarter while trying to avoid a sack. The injury ended his season; he had surgery days later and was placed on injured reserve. He had started the first eight games of the year and never played another down for Minnesota. The Vikings finished 7-10.
Where he went next
Cousins left as a free agent after the 2023 season and signed with the Atlanta Falcons on 13 March 2024 on a four-year, $180 million contract. Atlanta drafted Michael Penix Jr. in the first round that April, benched Cousins late in the 2024 season, and released him on 11 March 2026. He agreed terms with the Las Vegas Raiders in April 2026. He is alive and still an active NFL player as of 12 September 2026.
Player File
- Full name
- Kirk Daniel Cousins
- Born
- 19 Aug 1988, Barrington, IL
- Status
- Living; active player
- Position
- Quarterback
- Height / weight
- 6 ft 3 in, 209 lb
- High school
- Holland Christian, MI
- College
- Michigan State
- NFL Draft
- 2012, Rd 4, No. 102, Washington
- Vikings years
- 2018–2023
- Team as of Sep 2026
- Las Vegas Raiders
Kirk Cousins is a former Minnesota Viking. He has not played for the franchise since the 2023 season. This is an independent fan site and has no connection to him, to the Vikings or to the NFL.
Selections and Career Markers
- Pro Bowl × 4Selected for the 2016 season with Washington, then after the 2019, 2021 and 2022 seasons with Minnesota.
- Vikings passing line23,265 yards, 171 touchdowns and 55 interceptions in 88 starts, at a 101.2 passer rating.
- Best rating season107.4 in 2019, the highest single-season passer rating of his Minnesota years.
- Most TD passes35 in 2020, his career high in a single season.
- Contract noteThe three-year, $84 million deal he signed in March 2018 was fully guaranteed, an NFL first at that size.
- Career through 202544,700 passing yards, 298 touchdown passes and an 88-77-2 record as a starter across 14 seasons.
From Michigan State to Las Vegas
- 2012
Drafted by Washington
Taken in the fourth round, 102nd overall, out of Michigan State. He spent six seasons in Washington and started 57 games there.
- 2018
Signs with Minnesota
Joins the Vikings on 15 March 2018 on a fully guaranteed three-year, $84 million contract after reaching free agency.
- 2019
First playoff run in purple
Minnesota goes 10-6, wins 26-20 in overtime at New Orleans, then loses 27-10 at San Francisco in the divisional round.
- 2022
13-4 and an NFL record
The Vikings win the NFC North and go 11-0 in one-score games, before losing the wild-card round at home to the Giants.
- 2023
Achilles injury ends his Vikings career
Tears his right Achilles on 29 October at Green Bay. He never plays for Minnesota again and leaves in free agency.
- 2024–2026
Atlanta, then Las Vegas
Signs with the Falcons on 13 March 2024, is released on 11 March 2026, and agrees a deal with the Raiders in April 2026.
Six Seasons, Read in Numbers
Kirk Cousins started every game he played for the Minnesota Vikings between 2018 and 2023 and left with a 50-37-1 record, two playoff berths and one postseason win. Every figure on this page is taken from Pro Football Reference.
Vikings stats and records