Ex-Vikings Kirk Cousins, Mike Zimmer set to face off Sunday in Atlanta

Cousins and Zimmer were together for four years in Minnesota.

Kirk Cousins and Mike Zimmer will face off this weekend for the first time since Zimmer's Vikings tenure ended after the 2021 season. / Eric Hartline / Jason Parkhurst — Imagn Images

Former Vikings quarterback Kirk Cousins and head coach Mike Zimmer will face off for the first time on Sunday in a game that should be interesting and a little odd to watch for folks in Minnesota. Cousins' 5-3 Falcons, who have won four of their last five, are hosting Zimmer's 3-4 Cowboys in Atlanta.

Cousins and Zimmer didn't have the greatest of head coach/quarterback relationships during their four years together from 2018-21. Zimmer was never really a fan of the Vikings signing Kirk to a major free agent contract in '18, something that was confirmed in a candid interview with the Star Tribune before this season. They didn't spend much meeting time together until their final season. There was also the COVID drama, with Zimmer being openly frustrated about Cousins not getting vaccinated, and the infamous shove.

After that '21 season, Zimmer was fired by the Vikings and spent some time away from football. Cousins remained in Minnesota for a couple seasons under Kevin O'Connell, but tore his Achilles last October and was allowed to leave in free agency this offseason. Now he's the quarterback of the Falcons, Zimmer is back in the NFL as the Cowboys' defensive coordinator, and the two will be trying to take the other down in a big game this weekend.

Unsurprisingly, both men mostly downplayed their history together and had good things to say about the other when asked about it this week.

"Well, Kirk's got a pretty good knowledge of me too, used to go against us every day," Zimmer said on Monday when asked about his knowledge of Cousins and how that might help. "He's very, very accurate, takes good care of the football, very smart to be able to get in and out of plays. I know he had that Achilles last year, so they're using him a little bit more from the pistol than they were before. He's always had a really good long ball, he's always been very accurate. He's not going to move around as much ... but he's a good player."  

"I think that'd be kind of be overrated, if you will," Cousins said Wednesday of any familiarity he might have with Zimmer's defenses. "I think his scheme is so sound, I don't think there's much you can extract there. He's been around the league for so long and is so respected and has had a scheme that gives people problems for so long, that I don't think there's too much that, by having worked together, would make much difference."

Dating back to his time in Washington, Cousins is 2-9 in starts against the Cowboys in his career, most recently losing 40-3 to them one week after the Vikings' miracle win in Buffalo in 2022. But this current Dallas defense looks a lot different, with stars like Micah Parsons, DeMarcus Lawrence, Trevon Diggs, and DaRon Bland all dealing with injuries. That sets up nicely for Cousins, who is coming off an October where he led the NFL in passing yards (1,242) while throwing 10 touchdowns and 3 interceptions.

The Vikings connections in this game don't end at Cousins and Zimmer. The Cowboys have Eric Kendricks, Linval Joseph, Dalvin Cook, and Andrew Booth Jr. on their roster. Former Vikings first-rounder Mike Hughes is in Atlanta. There are Minnesota ties all over the place in this one.

And because the Vikings play on Sunday Night Football, fans will be able to watch their old quarterback and head coach duke it out on TV. It's a 12 p.m. CT game on FOX that will be televised in Minnesota and most of the country.

Even though it's been a few years and both have moved on, you can bet both Cousins and Zimmer would love to stick it to the other in a win on Sunday. It should be a fascinating little appetizer to this weekend's Vikings game.