Minnesota Vikings wide receiver Justin Jefferson offered zero pleasantries ahead of a reunion with his former quarterback Kirk Cousins.
After the Vikings’ 23-22 win over the Arizona Cardinals on December 1, NFL Network’s Tom Pelissero asked Jefferson if he had an early message to Cousins ahead of a Week 14 reunion.
“Not at all,” Jefferson said. “We are focused on us. We are not focused on any single person or anybody that comes into the building. We’re just worrying about us, focusing on what we got to do to make us better.”
Jefferson’s “no comment’ on Cousins comes after the Vikings’ impasse between the two stars. They declined to make a competitive enough offer to keep Cousins from signing a four-year, $180 million deal with the Atlanta Falcons in free agency.
Instead, the Vikings prioritized Jefferson, making him the highest-paid non-quarterback in the NFL with a four-year, $140 million contract signed in June.
Jefferson has assumed the leadership role left vacant by Cousins this season and has been a force in helping Sam Darnold resurrect his career in Minnesota with a 10-2 start to the 2024 season.
Vikings’ Justin Jefferson ‘Not Mad’ at Kirk Cousins for Leaving Vikings
GettyVikings wide receiver Justin Jefferson and Kirk Cousins
Throughout the 2023 season, Jefferson advocated for Cousins’ return but said it would not impact his contract negotiations with the team.
Appearing on “The Rich Eisen Show” in July, Jefferson cleared the air that he understood Cousins’ decision to move on and added, “I’m not mad at him at all for that.”
“I always knew that Kirk was going to do whatever he needs to do for his businesses-wise,” Jefferson told Eisen, per ESPN. “I just knew that everything just wasn’t the way he wanted it to be here, especially just with having to pay me and having to pay so many other different guys. I feel like he just wanted a new start, a new opportunity to start with Atlanta and a clean slate and I’m not mad at him at all for that. I’m grateful for what he has brought to me and the things that we have accomplished together.”
The duo accomplished plenty.
Jefferson won Offensive Player of the Year honors in 2022 and posted the most receiving yards by any player in their first four seasons.
Cousins reinvented his reputation in the league, leading a 13-win season in 2022 that was fueled by an NFL record eight fourth-quarter comebacks with Jefferson as his No. 1 target.
“But at the end of the day, it’s a business and you’ve got to do what you’ve got to do for yourself and for your family, and I clearly understand that. But it’s on to the next. It doesn’t really matter what quarterback it is in my eyes,” Jefferson said. “I’m always going to try to make the best of the opportunity. I’m always going to try to be the quarterback’s friend and make his job a lot easier. It doesn’t matter if it was Kirk or if it’s Sam [Darnold] or if it’s J.J. [McCarthy] I’m going to make it as easy as possible for him.”
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Kirk Cousins’ Future With Falcons on the Line vs. Vikings
GettyFalcons quarterback Kirk Cousins
While Cousins has shown flashes of his worth in Atlanta, their recent three-game losing skid has called his future with the Falcons into question.
Cousins is coming off a four-interception performance in a Week 13 loss to the Los Angeles Chargers. He has not thrown a touchdown in three consecutive weeks for the first time in his career and leads the league with 13 interceptions.
While ESPN’s Dan Graziano tempered overreactions that called for Michael Penix Jr. to save Atlanta’s season, there is legitimacy to whether Cousins will stay with the team beyond the 2024 season.
If Cousins cannot turn it around against his former team, concerns about his future will continue to snowball.
“This was absolutely bound to happen if and when Cousins hit a rough patch, and the Falcons absolutely did this to themselves when they used that eighth overall pick on Penix a month after signing Cousins to a huge free agent contract. Fans who believed Cousins was the key to unlocking this highly skilled offense will surely be calling for Penix at this point. And who knows? It’s possible the thought has come up inside the Falcons’ building, as well,” Graziano wrote.
“Asking a rookie who has never started an NFL game to come in with five games left and save the season is an awful lot. If Atlanta makes this move and Penix can’t get it done, it’s going to be pretty tough to go back to Cousins — this year or next,” Graziano added. “The Falcons’ self-inflicted QB conundrum is a sticky one, I’m not denying that. But it still seems like the best bet for turning things around is the veteran who has been through this before. If it doesn’t work, the Falcons can make the change in the offseason and move on from Cousins after one year.”