There's one reason above all others why Vikings quarterback Kirk Cousins is in the middle of the longest run of his NFL career without a turnover, a streak at four games after Sunday night's 28-24 win in Dallas.
"He's playing fast," head coach Mike Zimmer said Monday, "and that's probably the most important thing; making good decisions and playing fast."
Cousins had to play fast against a strong Cowboys pass rush, which still came away with a season-high seven hits on him. But Cousins countered with quick-enough throws that mitigated the damage to just one sack. He's also holding onto the ball; Cousins hasn't fumbled in five straight games, also an NFL career best streak.
"It's a combination of factors," Cousins said. "Some of it is just getting better as a football player, having gone through more experiences and learning what it means to protect the football. Secondly, I think we're protecting well, which is allowing me to see the defense and not have to take guesses."
Cousins credited the offensive line, which is on pace to allow 13 fewer sacks than a season ago. But Zimmer came back to the Cowboys pass rush, which was the kind of obstacle the Vikings offense needed to prove it could overcome. Now, thanks in large part to Cousins' clean play, the Vikings rank fifth in turnover differential (+5) through 10 games.
"There was a lot of times that he did a great job of getting the ball out, too," Zimmer said. "He got hit quite a few times (Sunday night). I'm not calling out the offensive line. He got hit a bunch of times (Sunday night), and there was times that he had to get the ball out quick, and I thought he did that well."
