However, this is different from the Matthew Stafford situation, during which the team and the player mutually agreed to part ways. It is different from the Deshaun Watson situation, in which the player wants out, but the team wants to hold onto him. Neither Cousins nor the Vikings have expressed an interest in exploring the possibility of a separation, which is why the rumors are so strange.
There is the Kyle Shanahan connection. The 49ers head coach helped draft Cousins in Washington when Shanahan was the offensive coordinator there, and he remains one of Cousins' biggest fans.
Zimmer made it clear that the Vikings' immediate future includes Cousins.
"Kirk's our guy," Zimmer said via NFL.com. "You know, he had a terrific year this year. We were fourth in the league on offense. We have to get better on defense – we had a lot of injuries and young guys — that's my job to get it fixed."
Despite the team's record, Cousins performed well for the Vikings in 2020. He passed for 4,265 yards, a career-high 35 touchdowns, and 13 interceptions. Cousins has been available, too, missing just one game over the past six years. And that was a Week 17 matchup in 2019 with the Vikings' playoff position already set.
Earlier this week, ESPN insider Adam Schefter questioned the Cousins rumors, indicating that they were baseless.
"Yeah, there's been this Kirk Cousins talk, and I guess something could happen," Schefter said on the Haberman & Middlekauff podcast, "but I haven't heard that's the case, so I don't know where that's coming from."
Schefter expressed skepticism when told that the Cousins chatter was running rampant on social media and across the internet, probably more so from Vikings fans' perspective.
"What does that mean? Who's reporting it that is credible?" Schefter asked. "I have not heard anything about Kirk Cousins being available. ... There are no absolutes in the league, anything is possible, but I have not heard anything about Kirk Cousins being available this offseason. We'll see if anything changes."
It's clear that the majority of Niners fans don't want to see Cousins in red and gold, and would prefer to stick with Jimmy Garoppolo if Cousins is the alternative.
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