Kirk Cousins remains the Vikings’ starting quarterback, but Minnesota drafted Kellen Mond in the third round, and that fueled speculation that some day Mond will supplant Cousins. For now, however, Mond says he’s just trying to learn from Cousins.
Mond says he’s been spending time watching film of Cousins to see how the Vikings’ offense works.
“Being able to watch Kirk on certain cutups . . . really enjoy watching his execution, his footwork, just watching how he’s able to go through reads and pretty much master the offense. The more I watch him, the more I’m able to mimic his footwork, his cadence, which is huge in the NFL. There’s so many things I need to learn, but I feel like I’m in a phenomenal organization with phenomenal talent and obviously can’t wait to get to work with Kirk also.”
Mond said Cousins contacted him after the draft and the two have had good communications.
“He was just congratulating me and telling me he couldn’t wait to work with me. I said the same,” Mond said. “When I got drafted, I knew what type of opportunity it was for me to be able to learn from a veteran, a guy who has been in multiple systems and been under center, playing in a great offense. Just be able to learn how he’s able to lead when he gets out here with J.J. [Justin Jefferson], Adam Thielen, Dalvin Cook. Just watching how [Kirk is] able to communicate and really just learn. Just him being a mentor and being able to watch him, that’s what I’m excited for.”
Mond had a very prolific career at Texas A&M, passing for 9,661 yards and running for 1,609 yards. As a rookie he may not play at all, but he’s optimistic that some time learning from Cousins will help him have a prolific NFL career as well.