Vikings quarterback Kirk Cousins and wide receiver Justin Jefferson have arguably formed the No. 1 pass catching duo in the league. Cousins has demonstrated accuracy throughout his career, while Jefferson is coming off a brilliant season in which he caught 128 passes for 1,809 yards and 8 touchdowns.

Despite the productivity of that partnership, Jefferson did not rate Cousins as one of the top 5 quarterbacks in the league. While most observers would agree with Jefferson's perspective, it seems strange that he would not give his quarterback a boost in a recent interview on Minnesota radio station KFAN-AM.

Jefferson listed Patrick Mahomes of the Chiefs, Aaron Rodgers of the Jets, Joe Burrow of the Bengals, Jalen Hurts of the Eagles and Josh Allen of the Bills as the quarterbacks who made his top 5.

Cousins did not get angry when he heard about Jefferson's assessment. Instead, he said he hoped he would improve enough in 2023 to earn a spot on that list next year.

“As a competitor, you'd always want that,” Cousins said. “People have to be honest and share what they think and I'm not going to tell somebody what they need to think. Hopefully in 2024, I'll be on his list. We'll see what we can do this year.”

Kirk Cousins is known for keeping a reasonable tone and staying focused on the tasks in front of him. While its admirable that he's not upset with his teammate, some might question whether Cousins has enough drive and desire to get to a top-5 elite ranking.

The Vikings finished 13-4 last season and won the NFC North. However, they were drummed out of the playoffs in the Wild Card round by the New York Giants, and Cousins had to live with thoughout the offseason.