The Atlanta Falcons created headlines when they signed longtime Minnesota Vikings quarterback Kirk Cousins to a massive new contract. The official numbers: Four years for $180 million.
The contract obviously caught the attention of one anonymous NBA player, who was recently asked by The Athletic to identify their favorite athlete outside of their league.
One NBA player named Cousins, but not for the reasons you may think.
“Kirk Cousins because he gets paid and doesn’t have to win or don’t have to do anything and made $400 million off of one playoff win,” the player told The Athletic. “Legend.”
It’s one of the biggest backhanded compliments you’ll ever see in sports and only the type of quote you’ll see when anonymity is guaranteed.
In defense of Cousins, it’s probably unfair to say he didn’t have to do anything to earn $400 million in one of the most competitive sports leagues in the world. Football is also a team sport, so it’s also unfair to lay the lack of the Vikings’ playoff success, outside of that single postseason win, at the feet of Cousins—though quarterbacks do claim outsized importance in victories, as well.
Cousins did not immediately respond to the quip, and it’s probably a safe bet to say he never will.
