Kirk Cousins is back.
Faced with a quarterback crisis, the Minnesota Vikings acted swiftly at the NFL trade deadline to acquire their old signal-caller in a deal with the Las Vegas Raiders. It came on the heels of a deflating loss to the Buffalo Bills on "Monday Night Football," which highlighted the need to save the season.
Ideally, the Cousins trade will mean Minnesota won't have to rely entirely on its defense to win games.
And the quarterback should be able to hit the ground running. He is experienced in Minnesota coach Kevin O'Connell's offense and is no stranger to suiting up in the purple-and-gold.
The Vikings will reintroduce Cousins to the organization on Wednesday, Nov. 11, and the quarterback is expected to speak.
Here's what to know.
When will Kirk Cousins speak?
Cousins is set to speak to the media at 2 p.m. ET alongside O'Connell and general manager Nolan Teasley.
It will mark the quarterback's first media appearance since being traded by the Raiders. Live updates will be provided here.
Kirk Cousins trade details
Vikings get:
- QB Kirk Cousins
Raiders get:
- 2027 third-round pick
The Vikings gave up a draft pick to acquire the 38-year-old quarterback they let leave the organization just a few seasons ago. However, it was a move that made sense for both sides.
It's no secret that Fernando Mendoza is the future of the Raiders and the writing was on the wall that he'd eventually take over at quarterback. Cousins was brought on to provide a bridge to Mendoza, which is exactly what he did. The Raiders were able to capitalize on Cousins' strong play and pick up valuable draft capital in exchange for the quarterback.
And while the Vikings likely didn't want to part with a third-round pick, it's a fairly small price to pay when you consider the team wouldn't be a potential contender without Cousins. It's important to remember that the Vikings created this quarterback mess, so it was always going to cost something to get out of it.
With a defense as strong as Minnesota's, this was a move the team had to make.
Kirk Cousins trade grades
Here's how USA TODAY Sports' Michael Middlehurst-Schwartz is grading the Raiders and Vikings for the Cousins trade:
- Vikings grade: A
- Raiders grade: B-
His reasoning? The Vikings were desperate for a quarterback and Cousins is among the best options they could have landed.
Kirk Cousins stats
Cousins has completed 64.1% of his passes for 2,340 yards, 20 touchdowns and eight interceptions. His 97.1 passer rating ranks 11th-best in the league entering Week 10 while his 20 touchdown passes are second behind only Joe Burrow (23).
Below is more to know about Cousins' statistical performance from the 2026 NFL season.
- Comp./Att. (%): 202/315 (64.1%)
- Passing yards: 2,340
- Passing TDs: 20
- Interceptions: 8
- Yards/attempt: 7.4
- Passer rating: 97.1
- QBR: 62.1
- PFF grade: 77.1 (13th among 36 qualified quarterbacks)
- EPA per dropback: +0.07 (11th among 31 qualified passers)
USA TODAY Sports' Jacob Camenker contributed to this report.
This article originally appeared on USA TODAY: Vikings set to reintroduce QB Kirk Cousins after trade: Live updates
