Nick Easton would also like an extension from the Vikings

Nick Easton would also like an extension from the Vikings by Adam Patrick

Who will be the Minnesota Vikings’ best defensive player in 2018?

Who will be the Minnesota Vikings’ best defensive player in 2018? by Adam Patrick

According to some who have already projected statistics for 2018, the new Minnesota Vikings quarterback is in for an impressive season.

Despite an impressive performance from Case Keenum in 2017, the Minnesota Vikings made the decision this offseason to pursue Kirk Cousins in free agency this year.

The Vikings knew it would take a ton of money to sign Cousins, but the team convinced itself that the quarterback was worth just about any outrageous amount he was looking for. So on Thursday, March 15, Minnesota officially announced that the team and Cousins had agreed to a three-year contract that included $84 million fully guaranteed.

With the amount of money the Vikings are giving him, there is a ton of pressure on the quarterback’s shoulders to succeed immediately with his new team. Minnesota is hoping that the $84 million they are giving to Cousins over the next three years will translate into at least one Super Bowl win.

The regular season is still a few months away, but that has not prevented some people from projecting how well Cousins will play for Minnesota in 2018. For the most part, the quarterback is expected to put up numbers that are similar to what he has finished with in each of the past three years.

Kirk Cousins’ 2018 Stat Projections :

64.7% completion rate

4,281 passing yards

29 touchdowns

13 interceptions

65.1% completion rate

4,323 passing yards

27 touchdowns

14 interceptions

65.6% completion rate

4,123 passing yards

26 touchdowns

13 interceptions

From these three projections, Cousins is expected to make it four seasons in a row with at least 4,000 passing yards and 25 touchdowns.

If the Vikings’ new quarterback were to accomplish this feat again in 2018, he would join Matt Ryan, Philip Rivers, Tom Brady, Drew Brees, and Peyton Manning as the only signal callers in NFL history to do so for four consecutive seasons.

The only objection some may have with Cousins’ 2018 projections would likely be his interception total.

While he has thrown at least 11 picks in each of the last three seasons, this is an area of his game that has good chance to improve in 2018.

With Minnesota this year, Cousins has a number of reliable receivers to throw to and a good backfield to rely on. He should feel less inclined to put the entire offense on his back with the Vikings in 2018 than he may have during his time with the Washington Redskins.

If these projections show anything though, it is that Minnesota should have a pretty dangerous passing attack in 2018. Something that the Vikings hope will lead them to a Super Bowl win at the end of the season.