Vikings Extend Kirk Cousins Through 2022 Season

The Vikings lock up their quarterback for a couple additional years and reduce his cap hit in 2020.

The Vikings and Kirk Cousins agreed to a two-year extension that keeps him with the team through the 2022 season. Cousins' agent Mike McCartney announced the news on Monday morning, with details being confirmed by NFL Network's Ian Rapaport, among others.

The extension is for $66 million across 2021 and 2022, bringing the total for Cousins' next three years up to $96 million. $61 million of it is fully guaranteed, and the remaining $35 million will become fully guaranteed in a year, provided Cousins does not suffer a major injury.

One important part of this deal for the Vikings, beyond securing their quarterback for the next three years, is that, as expected, this extension is back-loaded. Cousins' cap hit for 2020 has been reduced from $31 million to $21 million, which should greatly help the Vikings in free agency. His 2021 cap hit is $31 million, and his 2022 cap hit is a whopping $45 million. While that 2022 number is extremely high, it may be on par with the going rate for quarterbacks by that time, given that the salary cap is expected to rise under the new CBA. The Vikings could also look to work out a second extension and restructure with Cousins before 2022.

This extension may be seen as risky by some, given the narrative that still follows Cousins about his inability to win big games. But the facts are that Cousins finished fourth in the NFL in passer rating last year, fourth in completion percentage, and seventh in yards per attempt. And he followed up an outstanding regular season by beating the Saints in New Orleans in the playoffs.

Cousins, who is built to thrive in Gary Kubiak's play-action-heavy offense, is currently a top ten quarterback with an argument to be included in the top five. The Vikings are still looking to contend for a championship in the coming years and weren't going to get any better at the position by looking elsewhere.

If the Vikings can improve the pass protection in front of Cousins – and if all of his key weapons on offense stay healthy – 2020 could be an even better year for the Vikings' signal-caller.