The new Minnesota Vikings regime’s re-tooling of the roster reached its coda this offseason with the departure of Kirk Cousins, a move that surprised Adam Thielen.
Coming off his release from the Vikings last year, Thielen had fresh eyes and an understanding of the business side of the NFL this offseason. But even he felt Cousins, coming off an impressive start to the 2023 season before he ruptured his Achilles in Week 8, would not leave Minnesota.
“I didn’t expect it from an outside perspective because of how well he played last year and him coming into his own of being that leader,” Thielen said of Cousins’ departure on a May 8 episode of the Star Tribune’s “Access Vikings” podcast. “That’s the first time I felt like in his career that he’s really truly been out there, been himself and played at a high level.”
Listen to the full interview below (start at 31:30).
Adam Thielen Respects Vikings’ Decision to Move on From Cousins and Other Veterans
When Cousins arrived in Minnesota, the Vikings had pushed all their chips in on a championship run after coming off an appearance in the NFC Championship game.
They boasted the No. 1 defense in the league and had an offense budding with Pro Bowl talent like Dalvin Cook, Kyle Rudolph, Stefon Diggs and Thielen.
However, after failing to return to the NFC title the next two years, the Vikings’ window was slipping and they had to part ways with several veterans in the 2020 offseason to extend Cousins — but the writing was on the wall that the Vikings window was closing.
The new regime ultimately ripped the Band-Aid off over the past two years, releasing household names like Eric Kendricks, Cook and Thielen before closing the Cousins era for good this offseason.
Vikings owner/president Mark Wilf said the Vikings made a “serious offer” for Cousins to stay with the team in 2024, but the Atlanta Falcons won the bidding war by offering a four-year, $180 million deal with $100 million guaranteed in the first two years.
Cousins emphasized that “structure” was his top priority in his next contract, meaning the amount of security and guarantees in the deal. However, the Vikings’ transparency in drafting a first-round rookie quarterback also played into Cousins’ decision to move on. That fate to follow him in Atlanta after the Falcons selected Michael Penix Jr. eighth overall.
But as the dust has settled, Thielen, a homegrown Vikings fan before he was ever a professional football player, said he respected the path the new regime has carved for the team’s future.
“I think Kwesi [Adofo-Mensah] and Kevin [O’Connell] have done a great job of setting themselves up for the future and having a really specific vision,” Thielen said. “Even my last year there, they had a really specific vision of where they were gonna go.
“I would have loved to finish my time in Minnesota and would have been all for that but their vision was very clear, and you can respect that,” Thielen added.
Vikings, Kirk Cousins Storylines for 2024 Season
Cousins joining the Falcons made his team an immediate favorite in a weak NFC South division — where he’ll face Thielen’s Carolina Panthers twice this season.
In Week 9, the Dallas Cowboys visit the Falcons, slating a reunion for Cousins and former Vikings head coach Mike Zimmer, who was hired as the Cowboys defensive coordinator.
However, the biggest game from a Vikings perspective may be when they host the Falcons Week 14 — when Cousins may face off with the quarterback the Vikings’ selected to succeed him, J.J. McCarthy.
