The Green Bay Packers can avenge their season-opening loss Sunday when they host the Minnesota Vikings and newly reacquired quarterback Kirk Cousins in a crucial divisional matchup in the tightly contested NFC North.
The Vikings (6-2) obtained the 38-year-old Cousins, who played for them for six seasons, from the Las Vegas Raiders on Tuesday after Minnesota failed to score a touchdown in a 23-6 home loss to Buffalo on Monday night that featured a dismal performance by Carson Wentz.
Green Bay (6-3) routed New England 45-27 on Sunday for its second consecutive victory behind three touchdown passes from Jordan Love and four takeaways by the defense.
When the Packers and Vikings met on Sept. 13 in Minneapolis, the Vikings scored the final 29 points — including 22 in the fourth quarter — for a 39-22 victory.
The Vikings, who have averaged 15.3 points since Week 1, have dropped two straight after opening with six victories. Green Bay sits in last place in the historically rugged NFC North, but just one game behind front-running Chicago. Minnesota and the Detroit Lions are tied for second.
Minnesota acquired Cousins from the Raiders for a 2027 third-round draft pick. Cousins started 88 games for the Vikings from 2018-23, compiling a 50-37-1 regular season record with 171 touchdowns and 55 interceptions.
Vikings coach Kevin O’Connell masterminded the team’s offense for Cousins’ final two years with the team, so it’s a matter of how quickly he can recapture his former team’s offensive scheme.
“It’s still too early to commit wholeheartedly to what the plan on Sunday looks like, but I will say, excited about the opportunity of spending every moment we can between now and then to get him comfortable, and allow him to play for us this Sunday,” O’Connell said Wednesday. “That’s what we’re working towards, but also want to be fair to Kirk and make sure he feels good about it going into Lambeau Field.”
The Vikings managed just two field goals and 178 total yards against Buffalo. Wentz, filling in for injured starter Kyler Murray, completed 8 of 25 passes for 81 yards and two interceptions.
Cousins is 6-4-1 in 11 career starts versus Green Bay with 3,010 yards, 23 touchdowns and eight interceptions. All but one of those games came in a Vikings uniform.
In nine games with the Raiders this season, Cousins completed 64.1% of his passes for 2,340 yards, 20 touchdowns and eight interceptions.
“I’m grateful to be coming to a team that has a lot of ability, that’s well-coached, that just has a lot of promise here in the back half of the season,” Cousins said Wednesday. “So, excited to be a part of it and to hopefully contribute the best I can. Really, it’s about trying to go 1-0 this week and putting in the work today to be able to do that.”
The Vikings are 31st in the NFL in yards at 266.8 per game and 27th in scoring (18.3 ppg).
Minnesota’s offensive struggles have been offset by perhaps the league’s best defense.
The Vikings lead the NFL in fewest points allowed (14.5 ppg), rank second in yards allowed (280.0 ypg) and give up a league-low 161.1 yards through the air.
Packers coach Matt LaFleur is all but certain they’ll be facing Cousins and surprised at how little he cost the Vikings.
“He’ll be out there. He’ll be starting, I’m fairly confident of that,” LaFleur said Wednesday. “Obviously, he’s got familiarity with their system. Even if he didn’t, he’s a really intelligent guy and I think he’s been playing at a high level. I was surprised they didn’t get more for him, quite honestly. I was shocked when I saw what they traded him for. It was mind-blowing to me.”
Vikings linebacker Blake Cashman is in concussion protocol, O’Connell announced Wednesday.
Love torched the Patriots secondary for 372 yards, completing 23 of 29 passes. Wide receivers Christian Watson and Matthew Golden combined for 17 catches for 335 yards and two touchdowns.
It was the first time two Packers receivers had at least 150 yards each and a touchdown in the same game since Don Hutson and Andy Uram in 1942.
The offensive output was the first time the Packers topped 45 points and 450 total yards on the road since a 49-0 win on Nov. 11, 1962, at Philadelphia in Vince Lombardi’s fourth year at the helm.
The Packers also ran for 129 yards against the Patriots — topping the 100-yard mark for the first time this season — despite the early loss of Josh Jacobs with a broken finger.
Jacobs is expected to undergo surgery on his finger and could miss 2-3 weeks.