Shipley: Kirk Cousins is Vikings' last best option for Super Bowl dreams

Well, Kirk Cousins is back, and we will learn soon enough if he is the right man. He was deemed the right man in Minnesota once already, but it didn’t quite work out for anyone but Cousins, who played six seasons for the Vikings and left town with $180 million and one playoff win. Maybe the second time will be the charm, but don’t get too excited. The eye test tells us what ails coach Kevin O’Connell’s once exciting offense requires more than a veteran quarterback whose legacy will be something a tier above competence. An outsider could easily look at the NFC standings and wonder what the panic is all about. The Vikings are 6-2 and hold a tiebreaker over first-place Chicago in the North Division. Every. Body. Relax. But those who have watched the Vikings play all season know this team is perilously close to wasting a generational defense. An offense that started slowly has gotten progressively worse and laid an egg Monday night in an ugly 23-6 loss to Buffalo at U.S. Bank Stadium.

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