Vikings QB Kirk Cousins Will Miss Preseason Game With COVID-19

Vikings starting quarterback Kirk Cousins has tested positive for COVID-19 and will miss Sunday’s preseason game against the Raiders, Minnesota coach Kevin O’Connell announced Friday.

The news comes one day after Cousins was sent home from Vikings training camp due to illness. This is the second consecutive year that Cousins has missed time during camp due to a positive COVID-19 test. He was also placed on the COVID-19/Reserve list ahead of the team’s Week 17 game against the Packers last season, a 37–10 loss started by Sean Mannion.

“I have not gotten much of an update, but I do know he was not feeling well earlier,” O’Connell said Thursday. “We have a process in place where we sent him home, and we’ll go through our processes internally. I’ll get an update for you guys as kind of the week pans out on his availability for the Raider game.”

As of last season, Cousins had not received a vaccination for COVID-19.

In his absence, Mannion and second-year quarterback Kellen Mond are set to take most of snaps for the team on Sunday.

“No matter who starts, they’ll both play a ton,” O’Connell said of the backup quarterbacks. 

Under league-mandated CDC guidelines, Cousins must quarantine for five days following his positive test.

• Inside The Vikings: Vikings Training Camp Recap, Day 8: Kirk Cousins Thrives, Backup QBs Shaky 

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