Kirk Cousins reveals retirement thoughts ahead of Vikings' Wildcard game vs. Giants

Kirk Cousins has been one of the NFL's best quarterbacks throughout his career. The quarterback is currently in his fifth season with the Minnesota Vikings and is among the league leaders in both passing yards this season.

It looks as though the former Washington Commanders star has many great seasons ahead of him. However, the Vikings quarterback spoke to Sports Illustrated about the topic of retirement ahead of the team's Wild Card playoff matchup versus the New York Giants.

When asked when he'll retire from the NFL, Cousins mentioned a few key factors, including continuous improvement.

Cousins said:

“Every time you go out there and play and learn and get better, you build as a player. Continuous improvement is what I’ve always looked for … you always want to get better as a quarterback and I do think that continuous improvement has happened. The day that I don’t feel that’s happening anymore, I’ll probably walk away."

Wild Card Vikings vs Giants

It's not just Kirk Cousins that has to step up...
@JasonMcCourty https://t.co/W8CK4uvtKA

The 34-year-old quarterback finished the regular season throwing for 4,547 yards, the fourth-highest in the NFL. He's thrown for over 4,000 yards in a season for the fourth time in his five seasons with Minnesota. The four-time Pro Bowler led the NFL in both game-winning drives and comebacks with eight. Kirk Cousins will be leading the Vikings to the playoffs for the first time since the 2019 - 2020 season.

Kirk Cousins versus the Giants in his career and his playoff stats

Cousins will be facing the Giants for the 11th time in his career and his first in the playoffs. Overall, Cousins has a .500 record against New York, with a 5 - 5 record. Cousins and the Vikings faced off against the Giants back in Week 16 of the regular season. The Vikings star threw for 299 yards and three touchdowns with a 70.8 completion percentage in the 27 - 24 victory.

.@KyleBrandt HATES that the Kirk Cousins doubters might be right... but Kirk gave Kyle proof that he's relaxed heading into Sunday's late-afternoon game vs the Giants.

🔗: bit.ly/3k8prlV https://t.co/DSs7CEBMdF

The wildcard game will be the former Michigan State quarterback's fourth playoff start. In his three previous playoff starts, he's thrown for 774 yards, three touchdowns, and an interception. He led the Minnesota Vikings to a win in the Wild Card round in that 2019 - 2020 season. Yet, the Vikings fell short in the Divisional Round, losing to the San Francisco 49ers.

Let's see if Kirk Cousins can defeat the Giants for the second time this season and advance to the next round of the NFL playoffs.

If you use any of the above quotes, please credit Sports Illustrated and H/T Sportskeeda.