Emotional Kirk Cousins holds back tears as he celebrates first victory in his second spell with the Minnesota Vikings

Kirk Cousins was on the brink of tears when he spoke after guiding the Minnesota Vikings to victory over the Green Bay Packers on his second debut for the team.

Cousins threw two touchdown passes to start his second stint with Minnesota, while the team’s vaunted defense had eight sacks in a 30-10 victory at Lambeau Field.

Cousins went 21 of 31 for 207 yards just five days after rejoining the Vikings, who acquired him from the Las Vegas Raiders at Tuesday’s trade deadline.

The last time Cousins had played at Lambeau Field or suited up for the Vikings, he tore his Achilles tendon in a 24-10 Minnesota victory on October 29, 2023. Cousins missed the rest of that season and then played for Atlanta from 2024-25 and Las Vegas the first half of this year.

Following the win, Cousins’ voice cracked as he held back tears when speaking to Fox. He said: ‘It was emotional, you know, coming to the stadium three years ago, tearing my Achilles here, and it’s been a tough three years. 

‘I was just grateful for the opportunity to play here today, and grateful for my teammates and what they did today to you know make this outcome possible. It’s been a tough three years, you know. And there’s more of this story being written.’

Cousins rejuvenated an offense that had stalled under quarterbacks Kyler Murray and Carson Wentz, scoring 16 points or fewer in each of its last three games.

He helped the Vikings snap a two-game skid as they beat the Packers for the fifth time in six meetings. And he reestablished his connection with top receiver Justin Jefferson, who had season highs in catches and targets while finishing with 74 yards.

Minnesota had scored 49 straight points against Green Bay before Jordan Love’s 32-yard touchdown pass to J. Michael Sturdivant in the third quarter cut the Vikings’ lead to 20-7.

Myles Price and Gavin Bartholomew each had their first career touchdown catches for Minnesota. Cousins threw a 38-yarder to Price in the first period and a 20-yarder to Bartholomew in the fourth.

Each of Minnesota’s three touchdown drives included a third-and-long completion from Cousins.

Love went 17 of 27 for 220 yards with a touchdown and an interception while facing constant pressure as the Packers lost for the second time in their last seven games. 

Love hadn’t been sacked more than five times in any of his 56 previous starts, but the Vikings got their sixth sack Sunday on the first play of the second half.

Minnesota finished with its most sacks in a game since it had nine in a victory over Miami in 2018. The Packers hadn’t allowed that many sacks since giving up nine in a loss to Arizona in 2015.