Will the Vikings double down on their existing talent, move on and start fresh, or try to find a middle ground? Here’s one path Minnesota could take in the coming weeks.
Let’s get a few details out of the way. The Vikings cannot franchise-tag Cousins. His current contract will not void until March 13, five days after the NFL’s deadline for teams to deploy their franchise tenders.
March 13, the first day of the 2024 league year, also serves as a deadline for negotiations between Minnesota and Cousins. If the Vikings don’t re-sign the 35-year-old QB before that date, they’ll absorb $28.5 million in Cousins dead money in 2024.
Cousins was in the middle of one of the best seasons of his career when he went down in Week 8. His 63.2 QBR ranked ninth-best in the league, even though he worked without Justin Jefferson for a portion of the year.
The Vikings may be unwilling to guarantee Cousins’ entire contract as they’ve previously done. Still, general manager Kwesi Adofo-Mensah has remained adamant that Minnesota wants its starting QB back.
“Defensive end Jonathan Bullard is a free agent, while 30-year-old Dean Lowry missed half last season with a pectoral injury and has only 0.5 sacks over the past two years. The Vikings’ defense improved significantly last season but could use improvement at 5-technique defensive end,” Schatz wrote.
“Enter Madubuike, who can play as either a 3-tech tackle or a 5-tech end. In a breakout season, he had 13 sacks with a career-high 56 combined tackles and was named second-team All-Pro. He’s a powerful pass-rusher who also is a strong run defender.”
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