LOS ANGELES (Reuters) – Minnesota quarterback Kirk Cousins suffered an injury midway through the fourth quarter of the Vikings’ win on Sunday and reportedly has a torn Achilles, on a day when several other starting QBs were also hurt.
Cousins’s right leg buckled as he was dropping back to pass and he was sacked on the play. He hopped to the sideline on his left leg and was evaluated in the medical tent before being carted to the locker room.
Vikings head coach Kevin O’Connell told reporters after the team’s 24-10 win over the Green Bay Packers that he feared it was an Achilles injury. ESPN reported, citing a source, that the 35-year-old had a torn Achilles.
Cousins will undergo an MRI examination to determine the extent of the injury but the expectation is that his season is over, NFL Network reported.
Cousins was 23-of-31 passing for 274 yards with two touchdowns at the time of the injury. The veteran signal caller has never missed a game with an injury and will be a free agent after this season.
While likely the worst injury to a quarterback in the early games on Sunday, Cousins was far from alone.
Rams quarterback Matthew Stafford left with a right thumb injury in Los Angeles’ blowout road loss to the Dallas Cowboys.
Pittsburgh signal caller Kenny Pickett took a shot to the ribs from a Jaguars defensive lineman just before halftime and was later ruled out of the game.
New York Giants Tyrod Taylor, starting in his third game in the place of the injured Daniel Jones, left in the first half of his team’s overtime loss with a rib injury also caused by a hard hit.
(Reporting by Rory Carroll in Los Angeles; Editing by Clare Fallon)
