Wilson, Cousins meet in title fight

When Russell Wilson made the decision to transfer to Wisconsin for his final college season, he became connected with Kirk Cousins.

It started that season when Wilson’s Badgers and Cousins’ Michigan State squad played a pair of memorable games, including a Big Ten championship game won by Wilson. It continued that off-season as the pair ended up working out together at the same facility to get ready for the NFL draft.

And now in their eighth NFL seasons, they are again connected because of the success of their teams and their individual performances as two of the best quarterbacks in the league this year.

“I’ve spent a lot of one-on-one time with him just talking about life and everything else. It’s been cool just getting to know him,” Wilson said of Cousins. “Like I said, he’s a great football player.”

Amid possibly the best seasons of their careers, Wilson and Cousins will reunite on Monday night when the Seahawks host the Vikings in a key matchup for the NFC playoff picture. Last year when the teams met in December in Seattle, it was wild-card positioning at stake, and Wilson got the better of Cousins on a night neither were that great.

This time, it’s the division title races of concern to both. Seattle (9-2) is on the heels of San Francisco in the NFC West. Minnesota (8-3) is locked up with Green Bay in the NFC North.

“I don’t know of a game that we play where it’s lackadaisical and not that much intensity or not that much on the line, but certainly a night game in Seattle with two teams having good seasons so far, there is a lot there, and I think that’s what makes it fun,” Cousins said.

The reason both teams are in position for trips to the postseason is at least in part because of how their quarterbacks have played.

While Wilson has been in the middle of the MVP conversation seemingly from the start of the season, the year being put together by Cousins is pretty good, too. Entering Week 13, Cousins leads the league in passer rating at 114.8; Wilson is second at 112.1.

A year ago, when the Vikings lost 21-7 in Seattle became a turning point for Cousins and Minnesota’s offence. John DeFilippo was fired as offensive co-ordinator after the game and replaced by Kevin Stefanski. In the 14 games since, the Vikings are averaging 26.2 points and Cousins has a 113.3 passer rating.