For the fourth time in his career, Kirk Cousins is adjusting to a new home, this time with the Las Vegas Raiders, and is liking what he's seeing.
Cousins officially became the newest member of the Silver and Black on Monday and relayed plenty of positive first impressions.
"I can tell in just being here at the facility today that, from ownership to management, the resources are being put in place here to give us all we need to win," he said, via the team website's Levi Edwards. "And now, us as players have got to go do it, but it starts there."
Cousins signed what is essentially a one-year deal with Las Vegas at the start of the week, signaling what most already understood: The veteran QB is nearing the end of his career. It could conclude after 2026, although Cousins has noted he still feels he has plenty left in his gas tank. More importantly, the 37-year-old believes this stop in Las Vegas represents the perfect place for him to land at this stage in his career.
"For me, I got more football behind me than ahead of me," Cousins said. "And as a result, I see my time here as a great opportunity to finish strong. To leave a mark, to hopefully send things in the right direction, such that when I'm done playing, I can be proud of not only what we did in my time here in Vegas, but then what the Raiders are still doing."
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The Raiders have plenty of mountain left to climb. Las Vegas finished as the worst team in the NFL in 2025, failing tremendously to deliver on the hopeful expectations that came with the arrivals of Super Bowl-winning coach Pete Carroll and quarterback Geno Smith.
Both are now gone. In their places are new head coach Klint Kubiak and Cousins, with space saved for Fernando Mendoza, the Heisman Trophy-winning QB from Indiana whom most everyone expects the Raiders to select with the No. 1 pick of the 2026 draft on April 23.
At the NFL's Annual League Meeting last week in Phoenix, Kubiak revealed he'd prefer to enter 2026 with a veteran atop his quarterback depth chart in order to provide his offense with a mature leader capable of guiding the unit into their new world. A few days later, Cousins agreed to a deal with the Raiders, addressing Kubiak's desire under center by handing him the veteran he sought, one who is willing to execute Kubiak's vision.
"Going into Year 15 now, [I'm] trying to set a standard in the locker room," Cousins said. "Just trying to be an available resource to everybody in the locker room that would want to ask questions or want to learn about what my journey has been like in this league, I'd love to help them anyway that I can."
For Cousins, he could have explored a few options as a free agent following Atlanta's decision to part with him earlier this offseason. His chances of a return to Minnesota dried up when the Vikings signed Kyler Murray shortly after the Cardinals released him, and once the Jets acquired Smith via trade with the Raiders, that landing spot disappeared, too.
Las Vegas became the best fit for Cousins, giving the Raiders an immediate starting option to throw into the lineup. More importantly, Cousins provides Kubiak -- for whom Cousins played in Minnesota, where Kubiak served as QBs coach and offensive coordinator from 2019-2021 -- with an experienced veteran who can handle the duties of the job while the Raiders get Mendoza acclimated and prepared to eventually take the field.
"I think it starts with the coaching staff. I was really excited to be able to work with coaches I worked with before," Cousins told the team's Amber Theoharis. "I had some of my best years playing with them."
Cousins also spoke to the opportunity to play with up-and-coming players like tight end Brock Bowers and running back Ashton Jeanty as part of the appeal to heading to the desert.
"I think it's a team that has a lot of young talent and that they're building something special, and I want to be a part of that," Cousins said.