Kirk Cousins could be out for the remainder of the 2023 season, based on a video from Sunday's broadcast.
The Minnesota Vikings have put in a great road performance against the NFC North rival Green Bay Packers, but a late development in Sunday's game is putting a major damper on what could be a big win.
Quarterback Kirk Cousins left the game with an injury, and was carted off. Rookie QB Jaren Hall is in for Minnesota, he was a fifth round draft pick out of BYU this spring.
Unfortunately a very concerning non-contact lower extremity injury for #Vikings QB Kirk Cousins. Achilles tear is a possibility here. pic.twitter.com/3DdswZARh2
— DocFlynn (@DocFlynnNFL) October 29, 2023
As you can see in the above video, Cousins experienced a painful-looking tremor in the lower leg area during the snap in question, reminiscent of what we saw with Aaron Rodgers on opening night, raising concerns that this injury too could be an Achilles tear. If that is the case, Cousins would be likely done for the season, an absolutely devastating blow for a Vikings team that was visibly improving week by week.
Cousins had been playing some of the best football of his career this year in his age-35 season, after offseason speculation about just how much longer he'd hold the job in Minnesota. Last season was also a solid one, as he threw for over 4,500 yards and almost 30 touchdowns, and became the only quarterback in NFL history to reach the playoffs despite being saddled with a defense that ranked bottom-three in both yardage and scoring per game.
It's unclear what Cousins's future holds, as we can only hope that after some medical testing, it's determined that he's avoided the worst, and regardless, wish him the best with his recovery. The Vikings came into this week sitting in a playoff spot in a relatively thin NFC, so if Cousins is unable to compete going forward, it will be very interesting to see whether they stick with Hall, as Nick Mullens is on the IR as well, or if the front office will look to make a move for a quarterback with the trade deadline coming up.
