Kirk Cousins Was Intent On Landing With Raiders Or Vikings This Offseason?

After Atlanta released QB Kirk Cousins this offseason, he instantly became one of the top signal-callers available on the free agent market before signing with the Raiders.

Per Jason La Canfora, Cousins was “intent on reuniting” with one of his former coaches after being released: Vikings HC Kevin O’Connell or Raiders HC Klint Kubiak.

One league source went into Cousins’ thought process, per La Canfora. He named the Falcons, Steelers and Browns as options that didn’t make sense and also brought up the 49ers to reunite with HC Kyle Shanahan if they moved on from backup QB Mac Jones. The source also said the Vikings preferred QB Kyler Murray‘s age and athleticism to Cousins, and brought up Kubiak along with Brady as reasons the Raiders made the most sense.

“There really weren’t many options that appealed to him,” the league source said. “Atlanta, Pittsburgh, and Cleveland didn’t make sense. San Francisco would have been attractive if they were willing to trade Mac Jones so Kirk could reunite with Kyle Shanahan, but that was off the table. Meanwhile, Minnesota favored Kyler Murray due to his age and athleticism.”

“Las Vegas offered the best situation. He gets to play, mentor a rookie, and reunite with Klint Kubiak. Plus, Tom Brady sees the game through a quarterback’s lens and is committed to building an organization that supports the position.”

Cousins, 37, is a former fourth-round pick of Washington back in 2012. He played out the final year of his rookie contract before being franchised in back-to-back seasons. 

Cousins later departed in free agency for a three-year, $84 million contract with the Vikings. He was entering the final year of his contract in 2020 when he agreed to a two-year, $66 million contract extension. In 2021, he agreed to a new one-year, $35 million contract extension that was also fully guaranteed.

He was in the final year of that deal in 2023 and was testing the market as an unrestricted free agent when signing with the Falcons in 2024. He inked a four-year, $180 million contract with $100 million in guaranteed money. 

Cousins was released by the Falcons this offseason and signed a deal with the Raiders that pays him $20 million in 2026.

In 2025, Cousins appeared in 10 games for the Falcons, starting eight, and completed 61.7 percent of his passes for 1,721 yards, 10 touchdowns, and 5 interceptions.