Kirk Cousins and Adam Thielen were snubbed from NFL.com’s list of top-10 quarterback and wide receiver duos, but the two cracked the top 10 in the rankings done by Bleacher Report.
Cousins and Thielen came in eighth, according to Bleacher Report.
Matt Miller, who writes about football for the outlet, ranked Cousins and Thielen using a composite score. Here was his methodology:
“What’s a composite score? The number grade assigned to each player is a combination of Pro Football Focus and Football Outsiders data, my own evaluation and conversations with NFL scouts.”
Cousins earned a score of 84, while Thielen earned a 91. The Cardinals’ duo of Kyler Murray and DeAndre Hopkins ranked just ahead of the Vikings tandem.
Also notable: the Packers duo of Aaron Rodgers and Davante Adams came in fifth on the list. Adams earned a 92 to Thielen’s 91. Adams gets into the end zone better than Thielen does, but I think Thielen has been the better wideout these past several seasons.
Granted, Thielen didn’t put up huge numbers in 2019, but that’s because he suffered a hamstring injury and played in just 10 games. Thielen has had two seasons where he’s eclipsed 1,200 receiving yards — 2017 and 2018. Adams has just one, doing so in 2018.
I guess Cousins, Thielen and the Vikings are going to have to prove some people wrong next season if they want to be considered among the best quarterback-wide receiver duos.