Dry thunderstorms threaten to spark wildfires in Montana and record-breaking heat is scorching California, but the most unusual thing to happen in the world Wednesday is that not one, but two national pundits are picking Kirk Cousins to win the NFL MVP award this season.
First, it was Michael Irvin on the NFL GameDay season preview show Tuesday night. Then on Good Morning Football, when Kyle Brandt hopped on You Like That Express and ripped off his hoodie to reveal a Cousins jersey and his MVP pick.
The @gmfb crew makes their MVP predictions. đź‘€ pic.twitter.com/lhUo8uWQ61
— NFL Network (@nflnetwork) September 7, 2022
For Brandt to be right – at least by using his logic – the stars are going to have to align for Cousins. See, Brandt puts Cousins in the same class as past MVPs Rich Gannon and Matt Ryan, who had everything come together in 2002 and 2017, respectively, en route to carrying their teams deep into the playoffs and winning MVP.
Gannon led the NFL with 4,689 passing yards and 26 touchdowns in 2002, leading the Raiders to an 11-5 regular season before advancing to the Super Bowl where Derrick Brooks and that historically good Tampa Bay defense throttled Gannon and the Raiders.
Ryan passed for nearly 5,000 yards with 38 touchdowns and only 7 interceptions in 2016. Like Gannon’s Raiders, Ryan’s Falcons went 11-5 in the regular season and eventually lost in the Super Bowl. You know, that one where they led 28-3 and blew it against Tom Brady and the Patriots.
Putting up big numbers shouldn’t be a problem for Cousins, but winning has always been the hurdle for him and the teams he’s played on. He’s 59-59-2 as a starter, including just four games over .500 in four seasons with the Vikings. He’s is 1-2 in playoffs, with his lone win coming in New Orleans in January 2020 before the 49ers ran over the Vikings in the divisional round.
Unlike Cousins, Gannon played for winners. He went 76-56 in his career as a starter and before the Raiders’ run to the Super Bowl in 2002 they got jobbed by the “Tuck Rule” in the 2001 playoffs, which effectively jumpstarted Tom Brady’s career.
You can say the same about Ryan, who was 56-22 over his first five years as a starter in the NFL. Then came three down years before he led the Falcons to the Super Bowl in 2016.
Can Cousins do what Gannon and Ryan did? It’s possible, but he’ll have to prove a lot of doubters wrong to do it.
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