ST. LOUIS PARK, Minn. — Monday afternoon at Bunny's Bar and Grill, longtime Vikings fan Ken Larson was seated for lunch with his cell phone in hand. The free agency negation period was underway, and despite widespread speculations Kirk Cousins would sign with the Atlanta Falcons at any moment, Larson was holding out hope the quarterback would stay with Minnesota.
Sportscasters confirmed Cousins' football fate across the St. Louis Park restaurant's TV screens.
"Ah, jeez," Larson exclaimed. "That's what I was afraid of. Yep, too bad. Now the question is, you know, will some of the other key players want to stay if he's not going to be here?"
Coming off of a season-ending Achilles tear, Cousins agreed to a 4-year, $180-million deal with the Falcons on Monday. Early Tuesday morning, news broke that the Vikings are expected to sign former first-round draft pick quarterback Sam Darnold.
Cousins' departure was not surprising to those following this the closest.
"What's happening, sports fans? It's an 'NFL Free Agent Frenzy,'" KFAN FM 100.3 host Paul "Meatsauce" Lambert said while filling in for Paul Allen's 9 a.m. to noon show Monday.
Lambert otherwise hosts the Power Trip, and that morning Cousins' contract was the talk of both shows among other NFL trades.
Fellow on-air personality and Paul Allen show producer Eric Nordquist, and former Vikings linebacker and broadcaster Ben Leber, were on the air with Lambert during those couple of hours Cousins was a free agent.
Leber is also the station's sideline reporter for all Vikings games.
"I do think though that the longer this thing gets played out, the more likely that he's going to be going to Atlanta," Leber said on the mic.
"I would guess that it's Atlanta. I would think that if he's going to sign with the Vikings, it already would have been done by now," Lambert told KARE 11 during a commercial break. "I think the fans will be okay with Kirk Cousins leaving as long as the fans know what the plan is ASAP."
Following the announcement, some Bunny's Bar and Grill patrons said they were left with questions about how the roster will shake out and how money will be spent.
"[The Vikings] just can't get over the hump it seems like," Packers fan Bob Johnson said.
"Jefferson's got one more year but he may not want to sign," Larson said. "It all depends on who they get. They'll have a lot of money to spend, anyway."
While Cousins isn't returning to the Vikings, he could return to U.S. Bank Stadium. At this point, the Falcons are scheduled to play there in the regular season. However, it's possible the NFL could move that game to London.
Officials are yet to announce which of the Vikings' nine home games will be played abroad. The team is hosting one regular season game at Tottenham Hotspur Stadium during the 2024 season.
WATCH MORE ON KARE 11+
Download the free KARE 11+ app for Roku, Fire TV, Apple TV and other smart TV platforms to watch more from KARE 11 anytime! The KARE 11+ app includes live streams of all of KARE 11's newscasts. You'll also find on-demand replays of newscasts; the latest from KARE 11 Investigates, Breaking the News and the Land of 10,000 Stories; exclusive programs like Verify and HeartThreads; and Minnesota sports talk from our partners at Locked On Minnesota.
- Add KARE 11+ on Roku here or by searching for KARE 11 in the Roku Channel Store.
- Add KARE 11+ on Fire TV here or by searching for KARE 11 in the Amazon App Store.
- Learn more about the KARE 11+ app for Apple TV in the Apple App Store.
- Learn more about KARE 11+ here.
Watch more coverage of Minnesota sports:
Watch the latest reports from the KARE 11 sports team in our YouTube playlist: