National Football League

Vikings owner says team is focused on season, not Kirk Cousins' contract

Updated Aug. 9, 2023 2:19 p.m. ET

The Minnesota Vikings are entering Year 6 with Kirk Cousins under center, and the soon-to-be 35-year-old is entering the final year of his contract.

Will the Vikings commit to Cousins long-term before the 2023 NFL season commences? It appears to be a gray area.

Vikings owner Mark Wilf expressed that Cousins' contractual future is in the hands of general manager Kwesi Adofo-Mensah and head coach Kevin O'Connell, but he also said that Cousins' situation will come secondary to the upcoming season.

"We'll leave that to Kwesi and Coach to work through those discussions," Wilf told ESPN on Tuesday. "There's always conversations on that. But our real focus is 100% on 2023 and getting where we need to be, and where I know we can be."

Wilf later said that the team feels "great about the quarterback situation," referencing Cousins as an "outstanding leader" who has guided the Vikings "incredibly" across his five years with the franchise.

The Vikings are coming off a 13-4 season, tied for their best single-season win total since 1998 — when they went 15-1. With that said, they lost to the New York Giants at home in the NFC wild-card round.

Cousins totaled 4,547 passing yards, 29 passing touchdowns, 14 interceptions and a 92.5 passer rating, completing 65.9% of his passes in the regular season. In the team's NFC wild-card round loss, Cousins threw for 273 yards and two touchdowns on 31-of-39 passing (79.5% completion percentage).

Can Kirk Cousins get the Vikings over the hump this season?

Minnesota is 46-33-1 with Cousins in the regular season, 1-2 in the playoffs. The Vikings moved on from/lost several key players this offseason, including running back Dalvin Cook, wide receiver Adam Thielen, cornerback Patrick Peterson, defensive end Za'Darius Smith and linebacker Eric Kendricks.

Minnesota opens the 2023 NFL regular season at home against the Tampa Bay Buccaneers on Sept. 10.

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