Kirk Cousins has his critics these days, but it’s hard to deny the man has consistently been an effective quarterback for a long time now. He’s head to his second Pro Bowl after helping the Minnesota Vikings reach the divisional round of the playoffs which included a major upset of the favored New Orleans Saints in the wild card round. A lot of people have helped him reach this level in his career. One he credits is John DeFilippo.
The new Chicago Bears quarterbacks coach has a strong track record of working with quarterbacks that goes back years. Patrick Finley of the Chicago Sun-Times managed to speak with Cousins about him. The two worked together for a year in 2018 when DeFilippo was offensive coordinator for the Vikings. During that span, the quarterback set career highs with 30 touchdown passes and a 70.1% completion rate.
“I really enjoyed working with him, and I was disappointed I didn’t get more time with him,” Cousins said after Thursday’s Pro Bowl practice. “But it’s my own fault.”
“He’ll be outstanding,” Cousins said. “He’s a great coach. He’s been around this league for a long time. I think it says a lot when someone like Matt Nagy, who knows quarterbacks so well, hires him. I think that says a lot about ‘Flip.’
“When you look at what he did with Carson Wentz as a young player, I think there’s a lot to like there. And he’s going to add a lot to that staff. It’s going to be to my detriment, because we’re in his division. But he’s a great coach.”
It sounds like Cousins believes the Bears will get better quarterback play in 2020 with DeFilippo in the fold. History does suggest this will be the case. One can follow his career back over a decade and see he has a tendency to get the best from that position, even if the players themselves aren’t that good. JaMarcus Russell, one of the greatest draft busts in history, threw 13 touchdowns and eight interceptions with a passable 77.1 passer rating in 2008 with DeFilippo as quarterbacks coach.
A year later, rookie Mark Sanchez overcame a rough start to the season for the New York Jets and helped them reach the AFC championship game. In 2014, a rookie Derek Carr threw for over 3,200 yards with 21 touchdowns and 12 interceptions. This with Andrew Holmes and James Jones as his primary targets. A season later Josh McCown was on pace to have the best season of his career with the Cleveland Browns, looking at over 4,200 yards, 24 touchdowns, and just eight interceptions. Unfortunately, he was derailed by a rib injury.
Then of course there was DeFilippo’s stint in Philadelphia. He transformed #2 overall pick, Carson Wentz, into an MVP favorite by his second year in 2017 before he tore his ACL. Then he elevated backup Nick Foles into becoming Super Bowl MVP. Then came his work with Cousins in 2018 before another brief stint in 2019 with the Jacksonville Jaguars. During that time he coached up rookie sensation Gardner Minshew who unseated Foles as the starter.
Whether it’s Mitch Trubisky or somebody else, the Bears can expect improvement at quarterback in 2020.
