On crutches, Vikings QB Kirk Cousins pitches in to serve Thanksgiving dinner for the Salvation Army

With his wife and son, Kirk Cousins kept a commitment he made before injuring his Achilles tendon, joining teammates and greeting fans.

November 15, 2023 at 2:08AM

On Tuesday, Kirk Cousins got the cast removed from his right foot. On Tuesday evening, he slipped on a Salvation Army apron.

The Vikings quarterback made one of his first public appearances after his Achilles tendon surgery, joining teammates at the team's annual Thanksgiving event at the St. Paul Salvation Army. Cousins and his wife, Julie, joined Vikings teammates and their significant others to serve Thanksgiving meals to community members. The quarterback sat down in a walking boot and chatted with fans while signing autographs, as his son Cooper played touch football in the back of the gym.

"We'd committed to it before the injury [on Oct. 29], and I realized we can still get there," Cousins said. "It's fun to bring my son Cooper. We've learned that it is truly more happy-making to give than to receive. We came last year, and it was a great event. It was fun to be here with teammates and spouses. It's a little change of scenery, change of pace."

Though Cousins had to take it slow in the first two weeks of his rehab, he's remained a regular presence at the team facility, helping quarterback Joshua Dobbs and chatting with teammates during the week. A day after his injury, he signed autographs while balancing his foot on a scooter at a Halloween event in the Vikings facility.

"When you are injured, it's difficult," long snapper Andrew DePaola said. "You're not an outcast, but it's kind of like: 'Well, what do we talk about?' But that's the cool thing with Kirk: You can talk about anything with him. … Having him in the locker room, the younger guys seem him and they can be like, 'Wow — he doesn't have to be here.' He's a huge part of the culture of our team."

As Julie Cousins tried her best to pull her football-crazed son away from the touch football game in the back of the room, the DJ at the event played Creed's "Higher," the song the quarterback has helped turn into something of an anthem for the Vikings.

After two weeks spent mostly dwelling at home, he seemed refreshed by the interaction.

"During the season, we go from our house to work and back home, to the hotel and the stadium, and go home," he said. "We're so insulated that you don't really get to interact with fans all that often in a conversational way. I think it's a real positive for us as players to be reminded of how much this team means to the community. Not that you ever forget, but it's good just to get that reminder again, of the difference we can make with the platform of being a pro football player in Minnesota."

about the writer

about the writer

Ben Goessling

Sports reporter

Ben Goessling has covered the Vikings since 2012, first at the Pioneer Press and ESPN before becoming the Minnesota Star Tribune's lead Vikings reporter in 2017. He was named one of the top NFL beat writers by the Pro Football Writers of America in 2024, after honors in the AP Sports Editors and National Headliner Awards contests in 2023.

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