Vikings’ Justin Jefferson defends Kirk Cousins, says stats match MVP candidates’

Minnesota Vikings star receiver Justin Jefferson doesn’t want to hear any more shots at his quarterback, Kirk Cousins. 

The Vikings have already punched their ticket to the playoffs, winning the NFC North with two regular-season playoff tuneups to go. But some are still skeptical about Minnesota, which has generated eight fourth-quarter comebacks this season, tied for most in NFL history.

Many fingers point at veteran signal-caller Cousins. Some view him as clutch when it matters most, some view him as the reason the Vikings are down in those games in the first place. 

Jefferson doesn’t care what others think. He believes Cousins’ numbers do the talking. 

“All of the Kirk criticism has to stop!! I understand y’all hate the dad swag but come on his numbers are right with y’all’s MVP candidates,” he said on Twitter. 

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When you take a look at the numbers, as Jefferson suggests, Cousins ranks fifth in passing yards (4,117) and fourth in touchdown passes (27). However, his 20th-ranked QBR at 51.0 doesn’t help his case, nor does his 15th-ranked completion percentage at 65.7%, though it’s still a solid stat. 

It’s also worth noting that Cousins is the third-most sacked quarterback in the league this season, tied with New York Giants signal-caller Daniel Jones at 44 takedowns. 

The front-runner for MVP, Kansas City Chiefs quarterback Patrick Mahomes, has been sacked 24 times by comparison. Mahomes, though, is much more mobile than Cousins. 

Still, Cousins leads a 12-3 football team that will have at least one game in the playoffs after taking home a division title. Doubters of Cousins, though, will point out he has only made the playoffs one time in his first four seasons with Minnesota. 

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Jefferson is also not going to hear anything about the man that has been passing him the ball in a record-breaking season. He’s been the NFL’s top receiver with 1,756 yards and eight touchdowns. 

Jefferson’s receiving yard total is now the best single-season performance in Vikings history, surpassing Randy Moss’s 1,632 in 2003. 

Cousins and the Vikings can silence the naysayers if they can get past their first playoff opponent. The only playoff win Cousins has with the Vikings was a 26-20 victory over the New Orleans Saints in 2019. They later lost to the San Francisco 49ers, 27-10, in the NFC divisional playoffs.