Kirk Cousins

Cousin's Beginnings

As the son of Don Cousins, whom is a pastor at an Orlando, Florida church called Discovery, he is one of three children.   Cousins was raised in Barrington, Illinois, and attended the Holland Christian High School in Michigan, which is where he began playing football.  In his junior year, Cousins broke his ankle and had to attend camps in attempt to make an impression with recruiting colleges.   At the end of high school, he finished with 18 interceptions, 3,204 passing yards, and 40 touchdowns.

Upon finishing high school, rookie Kirk Cousins had the prospect of signing with Toledo or Western Michigan.   In 2007, after an attempt to sign their primary targets as quarterback, they offered Cousins a scholarship, and he accepted.  Cousins later attended college at Michigan, where he majored in kinesiology for the duration, and he participated in the Athletes in Action Sports Ministry.

Career in College

Mark Dantonio was the newly hired Michigan State Spartans head coach in 2007, and is responsible for recruiting Cousins to play for the team.  Then, in 2008, he spent the entire season as backup quarterback for Brian Hoyer.   Combine his total of 310 yards, one interception, and two touchdowns in just the five games, and we have a college year that brought attention to Cousin's ability.  Then, in 2009, Cousins won the position of starting quarterback, beating out Keith Nichol, as he was also competing for that role.  In 2011, the Spartans went 11-3 [7-2] and also played in the first Big Ten championship game, where Kirk Cousins was given the title of Second Team All-Big Ten.  The following year, he helped bring Michigan State to an 11-2 [701] record, sharing the Big Ten Championship.  In 2012, he finished his last game as a Spartan, defeating the Georgia Bulldogs at the Outback Bowl.  Cousins was given the 2011 Lowe's Senior Class Award in 2011.

NFL Career

Cousins was chosen to join the Washington Redskins in the 2012 NFL Draft with a contract salary of $19.9m, which made him the 102nd draft pick.  Cousins was looked upon as somewhat of a backup in case Griffin was injured.  In 2011, Cousins played in 5 games, with a total of 7 interceptions, 4 touchdowns, and 854 passing yards.  In 2015, Cousins was given the role of starter for the season, taking Griffin's place.  Cousins finished that season with the highest completion percentage in NFL history at 74.7, taking the Redskins to a 6-2 record, becoming their quarterback.  In 2016, Cousins threw a career high 468 passing yards, ending the game in a 27-27 tie vs Cincinnati.  That year, he completed 41 of 53 passes for 449 yards, placing him in the #2 spot on the list of most passing yards in a Thanksgiving Day Game.  They achieved a winning record of 8-7-1 and finished with a career high 4,917 passing yards.

Combine Highlights

Height:  6025
Weight:  214
40 Time:  4.93
20 Yrd Dash:  2.87
10 Yrd DasH:  1.71
Vertical Jump:  28 1/2
Broad Jump:  09'01"
20 Yrd Shuttle:  4.50
3-Cone Drill:  7.05