Niner Noise
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NFL hot seat: 5 quarterbacks who will be under pressure in 2019

By Peter Panacy

TAMPA, FLORIDA - NOVEMBER 25: Jameis Winston #3 of the Tampa Bay Buccaneers gets interviewed after defeating the San Francisco 49ers 27-9 at Raymond James Stadium on November 25, 2018 in Tampa, Florida. (Photo by Julio Aguilar/Getty Images)
TAMPA, FLORIDA - NOVEMBER 25: Jameis Winston #3 of the Tampa Bay Buccaneers gets interviewed after defeating the San Francisco 49ers 27-9 at Raymond James Stadium on November 25, 2018 in Tampa, Florida. (Photo by Julio Aguilar/Getty Images) /
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FOXBOROUGH, MA – DECEMBER 02: Kirk Cousins #8 of the Minnesota Vikings runs off the field after the New England Patriots defeated the Minnesota Vikings 24-10 at Gillette Stadium on December 2, 2018 in Foxborough, Massachusetts. (Photo by Adam Glanzman/Getty Images)
FOXBOROUGH, MA – DECEMBER 02: Kirk Cousins #8 of the Minnesota Vikings runs off the field after the New England Patriots defeated the Minnesota Vikings 24-10 at Gillette Stadium on December 2, 2018 in Foxborough, Massachusetts. (Photo by Adam Glanzman/Getty Images) /

No. 2: Kirk Cousins, Minnesota Vikings

Ever wonder if the Minnesota Vikings wish they hadn’t parted ways with their 2017 hero, Case Keenum, only to sign former Washington Redskins quarterback Kirk Cousins to that lucrative three-year, $84 million fully guaranteed free-agent contract at the start of 2018?

One year into that deal, it certainly isn’t looking as if Cousins is living up to his end of the bargain.

Sure, the stat geeks will say the same things they always do about Cousins. “Look at his total yardage, completion percentage or whatever.” And they’d be OK in doing so. After all, Cousins was one of only two qualifiers to complete over 70 percent of his passes last season, and he tossed for over 4,000 yards again.

But Cousins’ issues last year went beyond those stats. He was 1-4 in prime-time games (no surprises there), and his reputation for struggling in December continued last year, too, as his passer rating dropped once again from the season’s average.

Overall, though, the Vikings brought Cousins in to be the factor in getting them deep into the playoffs and into the Super Bowl. Going 8-7-1 in 2018 can’t be viewed as a success, which prompted our friends over at Viking Age to write the following:

"Kirk Cousins, while being very well paid, does not have a winning record in his NFL career as a starter. He’s 34-37-2 since he entered the league in 2012 and this record leads many to wonder if the guy just doesn’t have “it.” As the band Faith No More once said, “What is it?” The “it” is that ability to lead a team back to a victory when all looks lost. … Cousins often became part of the problem when things started going bad for the Vikings in 2018. He didn’t rise up and carry this team on his well-compensated back."

Cousins’ “it” reputation lands him squarely on the NFL hot seat if, for no other reason, than he was paid an awful lot of money to be the difference maker.