The Vikings paid a lot of money for a guy to hand off.
The Vikings cruised to a workmanlike 34-14 win over the Raiders to improve to 2-1.
Like in their opening week win over the Falcons, the Vikings didn’t ask Kirk Cousins to do that much. He did have to exceed his 10 pass attempts from that win, but not by a lot.
Cousins was 15-of-21 for 174 yards and a touchdown, which means he’s averaging 15.5 pass attempts per game when the Vikings win.
He’s able to get away with that, thanks to Dalvin Cook’s third straight 100-yard rushing game.
Cook finished with 110 yards and a touchdown, as the Vikings finished the day with more rushing yards (211) than passing yards (174). Whether that’s a wise use of their cash and salary cap room or not, it’s a formula that Vikings coach Mike Zimmer obviously enjoys.
The Raiders (1-2) struggled with injuries and penalties throughout the day, and look like a disorganized mess.