It seems no matter how many chains Kirk (or is it Kirko?) Cousins puts on the national media just won’t get behind the quarterback of a 7-1 football team.
On the Keyshawn, JWill and Max ESPN radio show Wednesday, Max Kellerman not only listed the Vikings quarterback as the 16th best QB in the league, but he also slammed Cousins’ physique.
Kellerman, when talking about Kirk’s frame said, “You could at least be in shape. I look better than that and I’m 50 years old.”
He told Cousins to “go lift some weights and added: “Cousins is not giving himself the best chance to be as good as he could be if that’s the kind of shape he’s in, period.”
A very unscientific poll shows that, at least according to pro-football-reference.com, Cousins is the lightest starting quarterback in the league.
https://twitter.com/ClappedDan/status/1590378115293130753
Aside from body-shaming Cousins (which, not cool, bro) it’s an odd complaint to have about a QB who’s been supremely durable throughout his career.
Since Cousins took over as a full-time starter in Washington in 2015 he’s missed two games and neither were due to injury. In Week 17 of the 2019 season the Vikings rested him with a playoff spot already locked up, and he missed Week 17 last season because of COVID.
“Hit the weights Kirk. This is a disgrace,” Kellerman said.
It’s been a mere three days since Cousins was on the Pat McAfee Show explaining why he isn’t more muscular.
“The college lifts are meant to make you look good at the beach and you better believe by my senior year I looked good at the beach,” Cousins said. “I really couldn’t move very well but I looked good at the beach. So, in the pros I’ve kind of backed off the heavy lifting and tried to dial it down a notch and work more on movement, flexibility, tissue work and stuff like that.”
Kellerman was already on an anti-Kirk vibe because of a list in which the ESPN host ranked him the 16th best quarterback in the league this season.
There’s just something wrong with putting Justin Fields of the 3-6 Bears, Jacob Brissett of the 3-5 Browns, Marcus Mariota of the 4-5 Falcons and Daniel Jones of hte 5-3 Giants ahead of Cousins, who is leading the *checks notes* 7-1 Vikings.
According to Pro Football Focus, Cousins’ passing grade this season ranks 8th in the NFL, well ahead of Fields, Brissett, Mariota and Jones. Heck, he’s also ahead of Jimmy Garoppolo, Dak Prescott, Justin Herbert and Lamar Jackson, though Jackson adds the running dimension that Cousins doesn’t.
Cousins has thrown a touchdown pass in 38 straight games. Jones has gone four games this season without throwing a touchdown.
Keyshawn Johnson called Kellerman’s rankings a “trash list.”
Former NFL quarterback, and guest on the show, Tim Hasselbeck said this about Cousins: “Kirk Cousins can play the position at an extremely high level. Kirk is good enough to win the Super Bowl. Kirk Cousins would make a lot of teams better. Washington would be in a far better place as a franchise if they would have just paid Kirk Cousins.”
Kirko Cousins deserves better.
Related: Josh Allen’s status for Vikings game ‘up in the air’
Related: Sean Payton takes dig at Kirk Cousins on the ‘Manningcast’
