Maybe Chase Daniel, the former journeyman quarterback whose career spanned 13 seasons with six teams, knows a little something about Kirk Cousins after talking to him during Super Bowl week.
Daniel, who now works as an analyst for The 33rd Team, told host Trey Wingo on Feb. 22 that he he thinks Cousins is by far the best potential free-agent quarterback but he can’t see him playing anywhere other than Minnesota in 2024.
“I actually talked to Kirk during Super Bowl week. We saw each other at media row and just chatted,” Daniel explained. “He’s like, ‘Honestly I feel great. I’m like a couple months out.’ And a couple months out, that’s good, that’s fast. I don’t think the injury is going to maybe hurt teams from looking at him. In my opinion, he’s the best QB free agent and it’s not even close. Like, not even close. I don’t think the injury will hurt him. He felt very good about that.”
Cousins tore his Achilles tendon in his right leg on Oct. 29. He showed off his scar during an appearance with Pat McAfee during Super Bowl week and then danced without limitations during the NFL Honors show two days before the Super Bowl.
It’s unclear how specific Daniel’s talks with Cousins were, but doesn’t think any team other than the Vikings makes sense for Cousins.
“Look, Kirk Cousins, his ties to Atlanta, his wife’s ties to Atlanta, I get all of that but he’s gotta stay in Minnesota,” Daniel said. “Like, how are you going to be the Minnesota Vikings and let your guy walk away?”
Daniel doesn’t think a fully-guaranteed contract makes sense for Cousins at this point in this career but his gut feeling is that it won’t be a sticking point in contract talks.
“Just do another two- or three-year deal. Kirk’s getting up there in age but he’s playing at an extremely high level,” Daniel opined. “I do think they’re going to find a way to work it out. I don’t know if it’s going to be all guaranteed because the two former regimes that gave him those are no longer there. This is a new regime and I don’t think they want to set that precedent there. It’d be crazy if it’s not Minnesota.”
