Minnesota Vikings: Kirk Cousins must avoid turnovers to beat Bears

The Minnesota Vikings face a simple scenario in Week 17 against the Chicago Bears. Kirk Cousins cannot turn the ball over if Minnesota is to win.

Time and time again the Minnesota Vikings have relied on Kirk Cousins to make plays in crucial situations in 2018…and time and time again, Cousins has let them down. At 8-6-1, the Vikings face a must-win situation against the Chicago Bears in Week 17. At home, in a de facto playoff game, against arguably the best defense in the NFL, Cousins and the Vikings face a huge challenge in qualifying for the NFC’s final playoff spot.

The Vikings are currently slotted in as the No. 6 seed with the Philadelphia Eagles trailing closely behind (8-7). The Eagles need a win against the Washington Redskins and a Vikings’ loss to the Bears to qualify for the playoffs.

It’s not an unlikely scenario for Philadelphia, either. The Redskins are starting a quarterback in Josh Johnson who, until this season, hadn’t played a down in the NFL since 2011. Additionally, the Redskins are facing a complicated locker room conundrum following D.J. Swearinger’s release.

The Vikings, meanwhile, face the NFL’s scariest defense in the Bears, which held Minnesota to 284 total yards in Week 11. It should be noted, however, that prior to the last drive of the game — when the Bears were set up in their prevent-defense due to being up by two scores — the Vikings offense had just 209 yards.

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The Bears won that Week 11 matchup by a final score of 25-20, as the Vikings finished with three turnovers; two of which were from interceptions by Cousins.

And that’s the biggest key to keeping the Vikings close in Week 17’s matchup: limiting turnovers. The Bears currently lead the NFL in takeaways with 36. The next closest team is the Cleveland Browns with 30.

The Bears defense has had few problems creating turnovers due to the amount of play makers on that side of the ball, so Cousins will have a lot of responsibility on his shoulders this Sunday. But isn’t that what the Vikings brought him in for? During the biggest game of the season, against one of their biggest rivals, Minnesota should expect the most from their $84 million man.

It’s a performance that could foreshadow the future of the Minnesota Vikings for the next two seasons. The Vikings have already hit their peak with the current roster, which is why general manger Rick Spielman brought in Cousins in the first place; to take the team over the top.

The Vikings will have mostly the same roster next season, and with only a projected $7.3 million in cap space in 2019 (pending any future moves), Minnesota could be trapped with a large commitment to a mediocre-producing quarterback.

This isn’t to say last year’s starter, Case Keenum, could have done a better job with the current team. Rather, it’s pointing to the fact that Cousins hasn’t been everything the Vikings have expected when the moments have been brightest.

Often criticized for padding his stats in garbage time, Sunday’s game against Chicago could be a chance for Cousins to redeem himself and lead the Vikings into the playoffs while hitting their stride at the right time.

We all know U.S. Bank Stadium is one of the toughest places to play in the entire NFL. If you’ve never been to a game, it’s hard to describe just how loud it gets.

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Minnesota’s defense, which ranks third in total defense (308.2 yards per game), should have little trouble against the Bears offense. If the Vikings can hold Mitchell Trubisky and Chicago’s offense to under 20 points, there should be no excuses for Cousins.

Week 17’s game is why he was signed in the first place. It’s time for Kirk Cousins to step up and win a big game. If he can’t, it could change the whole dynamic of a Vikings team that looked extremely promising entering 2018.

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