By Matthew Coller
EAGAN — On October 29, 2023, Minnesota Vikings safety Josh Metellus walked into the locker room at Lambeau Field excitedly. His team had just beaten the Green Bay Packers 24-10 to get back to .500 and the defense allowed under 300 yards to new Packers QB Jordan Love.
But once Metellus saw right tackle Brian O’Neill’s face, he knew that it was the worst-case scenario with quarterback Kirk Cousins’ injury.
“We went into the locker room and it didn’t feel like we won,” Metellus said on Thursday.
Since the day that sent the ‘23 season spiraling, the Vikings have started Jaren Hall, Josh Dobbs, Nick Mullens, Sam Darnold, JJ McCarthy, Carson Wentz, Max Brosmer and Kyler Murray at quarterback.
Most franchises that are put into a position with that many changes at QB would find themselves at the bottom of the standings but since Cousins’ injury, the Vikings have won 34 out of 53 games, a 64.1% winning percentage.
During that time, there were a lot of moments when the Vikings faced unique circumstances.
Jaren Hall got hurt during the first drive of his career as a starter and Dobbs was sent in despite having arrived mid-week. They won that game. Dobbs was pulled due to ineffectiveness in Las Vegas and Nick Mullens led a game-winning drive to pull out a 3-0 victory.
McCarthy suffered an injury in his second start and Wentz was forced to come in and play the following five weeks after starting just two games in the previous two seasons. Brosmer was pushed into action late in the season against the New York Giants when McCarthy suffered a hand injury and found a way to win.
Earlier this year, Murray went down 11 plays into his first start and Wentz entered and helped lead them to a victory over Green Bay.
Those are the highlights. There were lots of lowlights along the way as well.
Yes, it’s been a ride.
At the top of the list for why the Vikings have been able to survive QB chaos is that their defense has been elite for the last three seasons. But the other part is that they have a locker room full of players who have seen everything there is to see in the NFL and who are virtually incapable of being rattled by the madness around them.
How many times have you ever seen a 6-2 team make a trade at quarterback with hopes of the guy saving the franchise from the edge? Basically never. But that’s nothing for these players.
“I came into the league in COVID and then I got cut,” Metellus said. “I got everything at once….if you don’t get used to this being what it’s like in the National Football League, you won’t make it.”
Vikings wide receiver Justin Jefferson has gone through a roller coaster of emotions since Cousins left. In the 3-0 win over Las Vegas in 2023, a high Dobbs past sent him to the hospital after he was drilled in the back. Then in a must-win game against the Lions, Nick Mullens threw behind him when he was wide open for an interception to cost the Vikings the game.
In 2024, Jefferson mostly thrived with Sam Darnold, racking up 90.4 yards per game, pretty much right on his career average. But in his last 24 games, Jefferson averages just 60 yards per game and has caught under 60% of the passes thrown his way.
While he’s largely played a good soldier, Jefferson atypically refused to speak to the media following a defeat against Detroit and then was visibly dejected during the Bills game and was at a loss for words postgame.
Jefferson said this week that he never imagined Cousins returning.
“It’s the business of the NFL and you never really know what situation we could be in,” Jefferson said. “It’s a surreal moment.”
Offensive tackle Christian Darrisaw’s introduction to the NFL gave him a good idea of how bat-bleep crazy it can be. He was dropped into a 1-3 team with three one-score losses and was asked to face one of the NFL’s best pass rushers in Brian Burns. The game went to overtime and Cousins led a game-winning drive.
He’s seen everything and anything since then. From Mike Zimmer coming apart at the seams in 2021 to the largest comeback in NFL history in 2022 to an ACL injury that derailed his 2024 and 2025 seasons.
“It’s definitely mentally taxing,” Darrisaw told Purple Insider on Friday.
The star left tackle said that the players lean on their teammates to handle stressful times.
“We have an O-line dinner once a week, I feel like that helps with whatever’s going on,” Darrisaw said. “At the end of the day, we’re still human. So being around the guys outside the building [helps].”
Darrisaw also takes the mental approach of reminding himself that it’s a privilege to suit up amidst the madness.
“Everyone doesn’t get this opportunity, so I’ve never taken it for granted,” Darrisaw said. “It’s just the love of the game and you’re out there with your brothers competing.”
Other locker rooms might not have as many players with perspective during a moment of uncertainty but the Vikings have more veterans than most clubs and a very high percentage of them were on a team that went from 4-8 to 9-8 last season. A new QB coming into the locker room at 6-2 is an easier task than fighting back from the depths of hell.
And we have to acknowledge that while this situation may be almost unprecedented and bizarre as heck considering the history, the relationship between Cousins and O’Connell has made the move to acquire him more calming to the building than it has chaotic.
Cousins admitted on Wednesday that he wouldn’t have given the thumbs up to a trade that would have sent him somewhere unfamiliar because he needed to be able to play instinctually. He can do that within an offense that he played in for two seasons and with a coach who has known him going back to 2017.
“Just the way he’s gone about it, the way you feel a command,” O’Connell said on Friday.
There have been plenty of struggles since O’Connell left but some of the best moments for his offense have come when his back is against the wall. Whether it’s Dobbs’ relief appearance against the Raiders or Wentz coming in with almost no practice reps or losing Jefferson for a time in 2023, there is a lot of experience with this type of thing.
Cousins’ sudden arrival might be the easiest of all those types of situation.
“I think he thinks I’m nuts because we’ll install him plays in front of the unit and I’ll be like, ‘Kirk, you remember in 2022, this game that third drive?’ And he kind of looks at you like you’re insane. But I’m like, do you remember? And he does,” O’Connell said. “That’s the cool thing about coaching him and what I really, really enjoyed so much about him coming here is how many plays that he made. It’s the time spent carving it and shaping it.”
Running back Aaron Jones said that Cousins used every minute in practice to go over plays with the offense and aim to get everyone on the same page.
“He pulled us to the side, and ‘hey, we’re running through these plays,” Jones said. “When the defense is up, we’re in the back running through plays and just staying on top of it. So I like the leadership that he brings.”
Jefferson said that his presence was felt as they prepared the game plan.
“It’s just a joy to hear him just take over and be a leader in the meeting room,” Jefferson said.
Cousins has thrown 521 passes to Jefferson in his career and has a 109.2 passer rating on those throws, so it isn’t a reach to compare his return to riding a bike.
“He understands how defenses play, especially covering me,” Jefferson said. “He understands that the timing and the windows to throw those type of plays. But he also doesn’t force those type of plays to me. He just lets the game come to him.”
Players have also talked about the vibe that Cousins has brought to TCO Performance Center. For a team that couldn’t have been down any worse after back-to-back losses in games that they could have won against top-notch teams, the presence of a familiar face gave them a boost of energy rather than it being draining.
“He’s a guy who’s always positive and brings a bright light to this building,” Metellus said.
The other part of the Vikings’ collective cool heads this week is that everybody knows that Cousins doesn’t have to arrive with a cape on. While he is being tasked with saving the offense, he doesn’t need to turn them into the 1998 Vikings in order to have success. They just need completed passes, first downs and competent play.
In the couple days since his return, they have seen that on the practice field.
“The way he threw the football this week just was a really cool thing to see,” O’Connell said.
But that doesn’t mean it will be easy.
This week may have felt like it breathed new life into the Vikings but Cousins’ debut will come without favorite target TJ Hockenson and Jordan Addison is questionable. The defense is without star linebacker Blake Cashman against a quarterback who’s playing like an MVP. And there’s absolutely zero room to spare.
It’s a difficult situation. But that’s not new for this group.
Obviously, it will be amazing if they can win even one of these next two games, but there’s a world where they fall to 6-4 and are still a dangerous team going into the wild card weekend. If they can just stay healthy and build toward something, I’d feel pretty optimistic going up against a giants or panthers squad in the wild card and then facing an NFC north team they’re very familiar with the week after that. Good a shot as any to make an nfc championship game.
I was never Kirk’s biggest fan, but I’m optimistic that in this moment, he's what the team needs.
It really feels like they were overboard in a storm and Teasley found a life preserver to throw to them. Hopefully it's enough.