Free Agent Facts: Get to know QB Kirk Cousins

The Las Vegas Raiders signed four-time Pro Bowl quarterback Kirk Cousins on Monday.

Get to know more about the Silver and Black's new veteran signal-caller.

Career retrospective

It's no accident that Kirk Cousins has lasted 15 seasons in the NFL. His production and consistency speak for themselves.

His 298 career passing touchdowns rank fifth among active players, while his 44,700 career passing yards are sixth among active players. He's amassed 88 career wins as a starting quarterback. Of those 88 wins, more than a third of those have come from game-winning drives.

His eight fourth-quarter comebacks in 2022 with the Vikings are tied with Matthew Stafford for the most in a single season in NFL history. Cousins is also the only quarterback in league history to throw for at least 450 yards in a game with three different teams.

Early career adversity

Cousins was a fourth-round draft pick by Washington in the 2012 NFL Draft, the same year the team took Heisman Trophy-winning quarterback Robert Griffin III with the No. 2 overall selection. While Cousins was initially knocked coming out of college for lack of athleticism and arm strength concerns, he left Michigan State as the school's all-time record holder in passing touchdowns (66), passing yards (9,131), completions (723) and passing efficiency (146.1 rating).

While being in the shadow of Griffin, Cousins still played well enough to stay on his heels as QB2 for three seasons. But with recurring injuries to Griffin, Cousins took over as the team's starter in 2015.

In his first season as a full-time starter, Cousins led Washington to a 9-7 season and also led the league in completion percentage (69.8). The following season, he threw for a career-high 4,917 passing yards en route to his first Pro Bowl selection.

"An excellent relationship" between QB and Coach

The clear connection between Cousins and the Raiders comes through Head Coach Klint Kubiak.

Kubiak was Cousins' quarterback coach and offensive coordinator for three seasons (2019-21) at the Vikings. In that span, Cousins had some of the best years of his playing career, throwing for 12,089 passing yards and 94 touchdowns, all while completing 67.6% of his passes.

Additionally, two of his four Pro Bowl selections were under Kubiak's tutelage.

"It's been an excellent relationship, mainly because he demands so much out of his coaches because of the way he prepares," Kubiak has previously said about Cousins. "So every day that I've been in the building with Kirk, I've become a better coach. Nobody is working harder than him mentally and then getting his body ready for Sunday. I think, as we move on to this next step, I don't see very much changing. We've got to get closer in order for us to keep moving forward."

His last stop

Ironically, Cousins left the Atlanta Flacons on a bit of a hot streak.

He signed a multi-year contract with the Falcons in 2024 after six seasons in Minnesota. However, Atlanta still decided to select quarterback Michael Penix Jr. with their first-round pick that April.

Cousins suffered a shoulder injury that led to a decline throughout the year and resulted in him leading the league in interceptions. He was ultimately benched for Penix going into Week 16, which carried into the following season.

Yet reminiscent to the start of his career in Washington, injuries to the starter paved a way for Cousins to get back on the field.

The veteran QB won five of his last seven starts for the Falcons, including a four-game winning streak to end the season and almost win the NFC South. In that seven game stretch, Cousins threw for 1,471 passing yards and 10 touchdowns, plus he rushed for his first touchdown in three seasons.

Man of many names

Cousins is widely known by several monikers beyond his government name.

Initially in Washington, he picked up the nickname "Captain Kirk," derived from the lead Star Trek character. The nickname, given to him by the media, comes from his presence on the field as a leader, and obviously him being named a captain on each of his three teams he's played for.

In Minnesota, he also picked up a few more nicknames from the media and his teammates.

A plane ride back from London, England, after a 2022 Week 4 victory over the Saints gave Cousins and his teammates plenty of time to celebrate on their way back to the States. The plane ride went viral as Cousins was recorded dancing shirtless, draped in several of his teammates' diamond necklaces and blinged out pendants. This would give way to the nickname "Kirko Chainz" across the internet.

Many of his Vikings teammates and fans also referred to him as "Big Kirko."