ESPN REPORT: QBKirk Cousins said the Vikings remained “involved” and “were great” throughout his free agency….

Former Minnesota Vikings quarterback Kirk Cousins left for the Atlanta Falcons in free agency, signing a four-year, $180 million contract with $100 million guaranteed.

“It’s welcome. It’s just … a big change. Even as a sports fan, I don’t have an appreciation for when Kevin Durant leaves the Warriors and goes to the Brooklyn Nets. I just shrug my shoulders and like, ‘Alright. He’s still Kevin Durant. I’m going to see him doing the same things he did in the Warriors,’” Cousins said on “Bussin With The Boys” on May 14.

“When you live it, it’s a huge change

Durant’s exodus from Golden State to Brooklyn was far less ceremonious than his trade to the former organization three years prior. The one-time MVP Durant helped the Warriors win back-to-back championships in 2016-17 and 2017-18. He has since been traded to the Phoenix Suns.

Cousins had a 50-37-1 record and two postseason appearances in six seasons in Minnesota.

The Vikings selected National Championship-winning quarterback J.J. McCarthy with the No. 10 overall pick, trading up to do so.

The narrative has been that Cousins’ exit was sparked at least in part by the structure of the Vikings’ contract offer and their plans to draft a quarterback in the 2024 draft. With regard to the latter, it wasn’t the first time Cousins was faced with that potential reality.

Cousins got a rude awakening when the Falcons drafted Michael Penix with the No. 9 pick.

Vikings Almost Drafted 1st Round QB in 2021

His agent expressed their side’s frustration the pick was not used to upgrade the talent around Cousins. Cousins smoothed things over with Penix, per the latter on April 26.

But Cousins harkened back to years past with a previous Vikings regime was in charge and their attempts to inform him about their plans to select a quarterback in the draft. It proved to be a valuable lesson years later.

“Three years ago, I was finishing up a round of golf before the draft on Thursday. And I’m on like the 18th hole walking up the fairway, and Klint Kubiak calls me; our OC. And he said, ‘I just want to give you a heads up. We may draft a quarterback tonight.’ I was like, ‘Okay.’ And this was on Thursday. This was on the Thursday a few hours before the draft

“I understood that for a while. Teams are always thinking about succession plans, are always thinking about that.

“They didn’t end up drafting one that year. But you’re made aware that this is a possible direction that could go. So my point is this isn’t like a foreign concept. There’s an awareness that this is the NFL. You know anything can happen.”

Cousins cited the 2021 draft.

The Vikings were linked to several passers in that class, including Justin Fields and Mac Jones, both of whom were traded by the teams that drafted them this offseason.

Minnesota selected Kellen Mond in the third round. But dissatisfaction with the pick in general led to a frosty relationship with then-Head Coach Mike Zimmer. Mond was released in August of 2022 and has since bounced around the league.

Kirk Cousins: Vikings ‘Were Always Great’

Cousins said the Vikings remained “involved” and “were great” throughout his free agency, perhaps quelling some misconceptions after his swift deal with Atlanta. He also confirmed that the structure of his contract did indeed key his exit.

“They were great, and they always were. They were always great,” Cousins said. “It was just that the structure – and structure is what is always kind of driven the conversation for me – the structure was more on a year-to-year basis. And I thought, ‘You know, I don’t think that’s the direction I’d like to go.”

The lack of a contract before free agency started sparked speculation that the Vikings wanted Cousins back but only at their price.

The Vikings incurred a $28.5 million dead cap penalty by not extending his old contract.