The last few weeks have not been kind to Minnesota Vikings quarterback Kirk Cousins. Over the past two weeks, the first-year Viking has thrown for just 409 yards, two touchdowns, and two interceptions. This is not the type of production you want in the fantasy playoffs, and many owners are thinking about benching Cousins for whatever’s available on the waiver wire.

However, Cousins is set to improve during the final stretch of the fantasy season. New offensive coordinator Kevin Stefanski will wake up the dormant offense, and Cousins has a favorable Week 15 matchup. While he won’t outplay a guy like Patrick Mahomes, Cousins should still give you starting-caliber production for the remainder of the fantasy football season.

Fantasy Football: Kirk Cousins Will Improve With John DeFilippo Gone

An Improved Offensive Coordinator

Following their 21-7 loss to the Seattle Seahawks, the Minnesota Vikings fired offensive coordinator John DeFilippo. Losing an offensive coordinator near the end of the season doesn’t sound good, but this will actually work in Cousins’ favor. Former quarterbacks coach Kevin Stefanski will take over as offensive coordinator, and this change should help boost the entire offense.

Stefanski has been with the Vikings organization since 2006 and served as the quarterbacks’ coach since 2017. He was one of the main reasons Case Keenum posted a 98.3 passer rating with the Vikings, and his familiarity with the organization ensures that he knows how to best utilize the weapons on this team.

It’s no secret that DeFilippo and head coach Mike Zimmer were at odds about DeFilippo’s unwillingness to run the football. Minnesota ran the ball on just 33.01% of offensive snaps, second-lowest in the league. Because of this predictable usage, opposing defenses could hone in on the pass without fear of Minnesota’s ground game.

This problem with this predictable play calling was on full display against the New England Patriots. Dalvin Cook saw just nine carries throughout the contest despite averaging 9.3 yards per carry. Cousins threw the ball a staggering 44 times, and New England’s defense simply didn’t bother playing the run. Because they didn’t respect the ground game, the Patriots played more elaborate coverages which confused Cousins and limited his effectiveness.

This coverage worked because the Patriots knew Minnesota wouldn’t run the ball. Running the ball against a formation with just one down lineman will work 100% of the time, yet DeFilippo refused to do it. This forced Cousins to throw into unfavorable coverages, which ultimately led to a 201-yard, one touchdown, and two interception performance.

It’s hard to imagine Stefanski making those same mistakes. The longtime Vikings coach will run the ball in favorable situations, which, in turn, will open up the passing game. Adam Thielen and Stefon Diggs are arguably the best wide receiver duo in the league, so forcing defenses to respect the run should allow these two to run wild. Really, all Cousins will need to do is play pitch and catch with this talented duo.

Cousins’ Favorable Week 15

Additionally, Kirk Cousins and the Minnesota Vikings face a favorable matchup in Week 15. Minnesota gets to host the 7-6 Miami Dolphins, and Cousins should make the most of this matchup. The Dolphins allow 18.2 fantasy points per game to the quarterback position, which falls around league average. However, that number doesn’t tell the whole story.

Miami’s defense hasn’t played up to that average over the past few weeks and is set to be exploited again. Star cornerback Xavien Howard underwent minor meniscus surgery prior to Week 14’s matchup against the New England Patriots. Howard is reportedly week-to-week and could miss Week 15’s action. Even if he plays, he probably won’t be at full strength.

Last week, the Dolphins allowed Tom Brady to throw for a season-high 358 yards and three touchdowns. Granted, that’s Tom Brady, and he can make every defense look bad. It’s unfair to judge Miami’s defense solely on what Brady did to them. We can, however, judge a defense off what a guy like Josh Allen did to them.

Using standard scoring, Allen recorded 28.74 fantasy points against the Miami Dolphins in Week 13, and left a lot of plays on the field. While 13.5 of those points came from running the ball (Cousins won’t do that), Allen also missed two wide-open touchdowns. Miami’s defense couldn’t do a thing to stop Allen and the low-powered Buffalo Bills passing attack, so they should be highly susceptible to Cousins and the elite duo of Adam Thielen and Stefon Diggs.

The Week 15 Super Bowl Hangover

Make of this what you will, but the Dolphins are also coming off a thrilling, last-second win over their divisional rival Patriots. Keeping focus after a game like this is hard for any team, but history shows that bad things happen to teams that beat the Patriots. The Tennessee Titans followed their 34-10 victory over the Patriots with a crushing 38-10 loss to the Indianapolis Colts. The Jacksonville Jaguars are just 2-9 ever since beating the Patriots back in Week Two.

Miami could easily fall victim to the “We Beat the Patriots” Super Bowl hangover. It’s happened all over the league this year, and it even happened to Miami back in 2017. Last years Dolphins beat the Patriots in Week 14 before dropping their final three games, allowing an average of 25 points per game in the process.

Last Word On Kirk Cousins In Fantasy Football

Kirk Cousins has disappointed over the past two weeks, but the Vikings signal caller is about to flip the script. The firing of John DeFilippo should help increase Cousins’ fantasy value by making Minnesota’s offense less predictable. New offensive coordinator Kevin Stefanski will install balanced gameplans which will force defenses to respect Dalvin Cook and the Vikings run game. This, in turn, will open up the passing game. Cousins might not throw the ball as often, but he’ll significantly more effective when he does.

Additionally, Cousins has one of the most favorable matchups in Week 15. The Miami Dolphins defense has allowed quarterbacks to shred them through the air in back-to-back weeks, and Cousins should be able to do the same. Even if Xavien Howard makes it onto the field, Cousins should be able to exploit this subpar defense. Just like they did back in 2017, Miami could ride the high of their win over New England and completely sleep on the Vikings.

None of this is to say that Kirk Cousins is the must-start of the week. If you have Patrick Mahomes, you obviously start him over Kirk Cousins. However, if Cousins got you this far in the season, you can feel comfortable about him bringing you the rest of the way. He won’t be the best quarterback in Week 15, but he won’t drop another dud on you either.

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