The trade deadline has gotten a little crazy in the hours before the cutoff to make deals, and the Patriots are looking like one of the biggest losers so far, not because they haven't made a move, since that wasn't entirely unexpected, but because two of their upcoming opponents have massively improved.
It was bad enough that the Bills traded for ball-hawking safety Amani Hooker, sending a second-rounder to the Titans, as he's recorded 5 interceptions returned for 114 yards through just 9 games this season.
But now, the Vikings, coming off an embarrassing primetime loss to the Bills on Monday Night, just traded a third-round pick to the Raiders for quarterback Kirk Cousins, whom they chose to move on from for Sam Darnold a few years ago.
Although he wasn't ever considered the long-term solution for the Las Vegas team, since they used the first-overall pick to draft their next franchise quarterback, Fernando Mendoza, Cousins has been solid for their team this year, even if their 4-5 record doesn't really show it.
The Patriots already faced the quarterback in Week 5, when the Raiders came to Foxboro, and it wasn't an easy feat. Given that the Vikings have a much better offense and an intimidating defense, their upcoming game surely won't be any different.
The Vikings just got a lot stronger by trading for Kirk Cousins ahead of the deadline
In his 6 years with the Vikings, from 2018 to 2023, Cousins had an up-and-down career, with two years resulting in an under .500 win/loss record and other years that took them to the playoffs, like going 13-4 in 2022.
Kirk Cousins under Kevin O’Connell (rank from 2022-2023):
— NFL Researcher (@NFL_Researcher) November 10, 2026
17-8 QB W-L (7th)
275.1 pass YPG (3rd)
1.9 pass TD/game (5th)
13.7 pass 1st downs/game (3rd)
67.1 completion pct (8th)#Skol
He was voted into the Pro Bowl three times during his tenure, and absolutely thrived having a player like Justin Jefferson to work with. That's only gotten better since they added Jordan Addison and TJ Hockenson, all of whom he will have for the rest of the season.
Since Jefferson hasn't played his best football this year, mostly due to a revolving door of quarterbacks, he will surely be happy to see Cousins making his way back, as he's caught the most touchdowns (28) with him during his career.
And that will be made easier by a quarterback who has thrown the second-most touchdowns this year, with Cousins at 20 through 9 games, only behind Joe Burrow's 23.
This puts Jefferson back on the map, along with Addison and Hockenson, both of whom previously thrived with Cousins under center.
That makes the Patriots' job that much more difficult in Week 14, as if facing their defense, which had an interception last night against Josh Allen and was very disruptive all night long, wasn't going to be difficult enough. Adding a more competent quarterback into the mix with an already star-studded offense is the worst-case scenario for them.
The first time they faced Cousins, although the Patriots won 45-17, the quarterback completed 19 of 28 passes for 243 yards and a touchdown. He had a much weaker offensive roster to work with than he will with the Vikings, with only Brock Bowers as his main playmaker, and he will now have more talent and a familiar team to help him improve.
It could prove to be disastrous for the Patriots' defense, who just struggled mightily against an impressive Packers' offense, and they only have 3 weeks to get better before Cousins comes to town again.
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