Week 11 at Chicago Bears
Kirk Cousins is coming off of a bye week, but the game before that he had his lowest yardage output of the season (164). He also just scored once while turning the ball over twice. Overall, not a great fantasy performance from someone who has mostly been pretty good in 2018.
He gets a tough matchup this week vs. the Bears who have allowed the seventh-fewest fantasy points to opposing QBs in 2018. Perhaps Cousins can improve a little bit with Stefon Diggs back in the lineup, but we view him outside of QB1 territory vs. Chicago.
Week 9 vs. Detroit Lions
Kirk Cousins had his fourth 300-yard game last week, and fifth multi-touchdown game, finishing with 359 and two TDs. Cousins has been the fifth-highest scoring QB in fantasy this season as he's benefited from having one of the best WR duos in addition to a struggling running game.
He should be a strong option again this week vs. the Lions, who have allowed six multi-passing-touchdown games to QBs this season. You can likely expect a 300+ yard, two-touchdown game from Cousins vs. Detroit. He's a strong QB1 option.
Week 8 vs. New Orleans Saints
Kirk Cousins had a decent 241-yard, two-touchdown game last week. It was his second lowest yardage performance of the season, with the lowest coming the week before. So it's not super promising as he's had his two worst games back-to-back, but it could be much worse.
Expect Cousins to bounce back with big numbers this week in a favorable matchup vs. the Saints. New Orleans has allowed the second-most fantasy points to opposing QBs this season. Cousins should be a strong QB1 choice in Week 8.
Week 7 at New York Jets
Kirk Cousins has been the fifth-highest scoring QB in fantasy this season, proving he was worth all of that money in the offseason. He hasn't had a Patrick Mahomes level of production, but he's been consistently great week-in, and week-out, mainly because he has so many great options to throw to.
He gets a decent matchup this week against the Jets who have allowed 300+ passing yards in 4/6 games this season, including the last three. New York has allowed eight passing touchdowns in those last three games, which means Cousins should have no problem continuing his high production. We like him as a QB1 play.
Week 6 vs. Arizona Cardinals
Kirk Cousins had a great game last week, completing 30-of-37 passes for 301 yards, although he did just finish with one score. He's averaging over 330 yards per game this season with at least 35 pass attempts in each game, meaning Minnesota is putting its highly-paid QB to work.
He gets a somewhat tough matchup this week against the Cardinals, who have allowed the seventh-fewest fantasy points to opposing QBs. But Arizona has also allowed two 300-yard games this season, so we're not too worried about Cousins. He can still be viewed as a strong QB1.
Week 5 at Philadelphia Eagles
Kirk Cousins is coming off a big game where he threw for 422 yards, 3 touchdowns and 0 interceptions. He even led Minnesota in rushing yards with 28. He's now had 400 yards in two games this season while also throwing for at least three TDs in each of those games.
He gets a decent matchup against the Eagles this week in what could be another high-scoring showdown. Philadelphia has had at least 40 pass attempts against them in 3/4 games this season, and Cousins is averaging 381 yards in games where he throws at least 40 times. The Vikings QB should be viewed as a low-end QB1 choice vs. Philly.
Week 4 at Los Angeles Rams
Well, Kirk Cousins was set up for a big game last week but did not deliver. He had three turnovers, just one score and finished with 296 yards on 55 pass attempts. It was a weird game because the Bills had been awful the first two games of the season. There's really no good explanation for what happened.
He'll likely struggle again on a short week versus the Rams. The Rams have allowed the fewest fantasy points to opposing QBs so far this season. Through the first two games, it looked like Cousins was a solid QB1, but a poor performance and a bad matchup make him a lot less intriguing. He's looking outside the QB1 territory in Week 4.
Week 3 vs. Buffalo Bills
Kirk Cousins was slinging the ball around last week, finishing with 425 yards and four touchdowns. He's had a strong start to his Vikings career, taking full advantage of the Stefon Diggs and Adam Thielen WR duo.
Cousins should continue his high production this week in a favorable matchup against the Bills. Buffalo hasn't been able to stop much of anything this season, allowing three passing touchdowns to QBs in each week. If anything, the Bills might be so bad that Cousins doesn't end up throwing much near the end due to the game being a blowout.
Nevertheless, Cousins should have a strong performance this week and we like him as a QB1.
Week 2 at Green Bay Packers
Kirk Cousins was efficient in his first game as a Viking. He finished with 244 yards, two touchdowns and zero interceptions while adding 26 yards on the ground. It's the type of production you like to see from a QB on a weekly basis.
He'll look to have a similar performance this week against the Packers, which should be a favorable matchup. We like Cousins as a QB1 against Green Bay.
Week 1 vs. San Francisco 49ers
Kirk Cousins moved on from Washington to Minnesota this offseason and joins a Vikings squad loaded with talent. Stefon Diggs and Adam Thielen are one of the best WR duos in the league and Dalvin Cook and Kyle Rudolph are also great options in the passing game.
Cousins should get off to a strong start in his Vikings career as he gets a favorable matchup in Week 1 against the 49ers. Expect him to utilize his weapons and limit his mistakes. He's one of our stronger options at QB this week.
