1 Reason Why Kirk Cousins Will Be a Fantasy Football Flop This Weekend
The 2019 NFL season has been a roller coaster for Minnesota Vikings quarterback Kirk Cousins. Depending on the week, he’s either been the hero or the goat; he’s been praised and criticized in seemingly equal measure. That inconsistency has carried over to fantasy football, where Cousins has put up a few massive weeks and a couple of stinkers.
While it might be tempting to keep Cousins in the starting line-up, this might be the weekend to staple him to the bench. There’s one major reason why the quarterback will be a fantasy football flop today.
Kirk Cousins’ 2019 season so far
This season, Kirk Cousins has passed for 2,437 yards, 18 touchdowns, and only three interceptions. While those numbers look good, they belie the roller coaster year that the Vikings quarterback has had.
After the team split their first two games, cracks started to emerge in the offense. Receiver Stefon Diggs was outwardly unhappy; he skipped practices, and trade rumors began brewing, but nothing came of them. His fellow wideout, Adam Thielen, called out the offense, saying that they needed to throw the ball more; he could have been calling out head coach Mike Zimmer, but Cousins apologized and pledged to move the ball downfield.
After that, however, things seemed to change. The Vikings offense exploded, with Cousins making history in the process; it seemed like he was finally feeling comfortable and letting his talent shine through. Things waivered a bit during a tough loss to the Kansas City Chiefs, but Cousins seemed to settle back down and get over the primetime hump last Sunday against the Dallas Cowboys.
Kirk Cousins’ fantasy football performances
As you might expect, Kirk Cousins’ fantasy performances have mirrored his production on the field. After a slow start, the Vikings quarterback has exploded.
During the weeks when he was setting NFL records, Cousins was lighting up the fantasy scoreboard; his back-to-back games against the Eagles and Lions were a boon for any owner. Despite those massive weekends, there have been quite a few down weeks; Cousins has also posted 15 points or fewer five times this season. While most of those came in the earlier part of the schedule, those lean times have to be in the back of every fantasy owner’s mind.
After a solid game in Dallas and four big performances in the past five games, it might be tempting to play the quarterback this weekend. But there’s one specific reason why you shouldn’t put Kirk Cousins in your line-up.
The Denver Broncos defense
In the AFC West, it’s easy to overlook the Denver Broncos. The Chiefs have one of the most exciting players in the league, the Raiders always have something going on, for better or worse, and the Chargers have plenty of relocation drama. The Broncos, it seems, are kind of just there.
It’s less easy to overlook them from a fantasy perspective, however. Denver’s pass defense has actually been quite strong this year, allowing only one quarterback to put up 20 or more fantasy points; that lone outlier was Gardner Minshew at the height of Minshew Mania.
That defense, combined with the fact that Adam Theilen will not play on Sunday, make Kirk Cousins a risky proposition for your fantasy football team. While the quarterback has been putting up big numbers lately, you’ll be rolling the dice if you keep him in the starting line-up.
