Vikings’ Cousins could give Packers fits

Kirk Cousins wasn’t selected to the Pro Bowl this season, but he’s certainly had a Pro Bowl type season.

Cousins, the Minnesota Vikings’ crafty and ever-so proficient quarterback, is quietly enjoying an outstanding season. He’s registered passing numbers that compare quite favorably to the league’s elite QBs, including Pro Bowl bound Aaron Rodgers of the Green Bay Packers.

To wit:

•  Cousins had thrown for 25 touchdowns, one more than Rodgers.
• Cousins had passed for 3,481 yard, or 18 more than Rodgers.
• Cousins has had five passes picked off, just three more than Rodgers’ league-best two.
• And Cousins had completed an impressive 70.5 percent of his passes, which is better than both Rodgers (63.3 percent) and Seattle’s Russell Wilson (67.4), who was also chosen to the Pro Bowl.

Cousins’ only subpar performance this season came on Sept. 15 against the Packers in Green Bay where he went 14 of 32 with one touchdown and two interceptions.

Since then, Cousins has been consistently effective and especially productive in the last five games, of which the Vikings won four. Cousins connected on 117 of 160 passes (73 percent) for 1,264 yards. He threw nine touchdowns and was picked off only twice.

With Vikings standout running back Dalvin Cook being sidelined with a chest injury and his backup Alexander Mattison listed as questionable (ankle), Cousins will have to turn in a near-perfect for the Vikings to beat the Packers.

Prediction: Packers 20, Vikings 13.