Ex-Vikings linebacker: Mike Zimmer didn’t like Kirk Cousins, and it was obvious

Mike Zimmer DID NOT like that — “that” being Kirk Cousins. And supposedly the whole team knew it.

Former Vikings linebacker Ben Leber said during a radio interview that the former Minnesota coach and the three-time Pro Bowl quarterback didn’t have a great relationship. In fact, Leber, who is now a sideline reporter for the team’s radio broadcasts, said it’s obvious that Zimmer wasn’t a huge fan of Cousins, adding that the 66-year-old coach held his signal caller back.

Zimmer was let go after the 2021 season, and the Vikings hired Rams offensive coordinator Kevin O’Connell to pair with Cousins in 2022. 

“I think he’s gonna finally thrive, really thrive, in a system and a coach that actually respects him,” Leber told Zach Gelb of CBS Sports Radio. “I mean, It’s not like I’m not breaking news here that Mike Zimmer did not like Kirk Cousins. And I think that showed in the way that Kirk behaved and the way that he carried himself. The team was never given to him, or he was never allowed to earn the trust of the team, because the head coach just didn’t like him.”

After six seasons in Washington, Cousins signed a historic, fully guaranteed contract with the Vikings in 2018. Zimmer started as the team’s coach in 2014. Over four seasons, Cousins and Zimmer posted a 33-31 record with only one playoff appearance. 

Cousins, 33, has earned his fair share of criticism during his career, but Leber, a linebacker for the Vikings 2006 to 2010, said the attacks on Cousins during his Minnesota tenure are mostly unwarranted. 

“That was a top-10 offense last year, with a very green, first-time offensive coordinator [Klint Kubiak],” he said. “Where was their defense ranked last year? Thirty-first. The year before that, I think they were ranked 27th. So people can rail on Kirk and rail on this offense and say we can’t win with him or we can’t win with this offense. 

“I say that’s total BS,” he added. “We couldn’t win with the crap defense that we’ve had the last two years. We couldn’t stop the run, at all — ever — and then in key moments of the games we couldn’t stop any two-minute offense. So, to me, the biggest liability of this team has been defense.”