Kirk Cousins

Kirk Cousins (born August 19, 1988) is an American football quarterback for the Washington Redskins of the National Football League (NFL). He played college football at Michigan State University, where he was the Spartans' starter from 2009 to 2011. He was drafted with the 102nd overall pick in the fourth round of the 2012 NFL Draft by the Redskins.

Early Life
Cousins is the son of Don Cousins, a minister who consults churches across the country, and Maryann Cousins. He is the second oldest of three children. Cousins attended Holland Christian High School in Holland, Michigan where he starred in football, baseball (as a pitcher), and basketball. He broke his ankle in his junior year and was forced to attend camps in order to make an impression with recruiting colleges. He was about to sign with Toledo or Western Michigan when Mark Dantonio became the head coach at Michigan State. After Dantonio failed to sign his top targets at quarterback, he offered a scholarship to Cousins in January 2007, and he accepted. He also participated in Athletes in Action sports ministry. Cousins majored in kinesiology throughout his college career.

Cousins finished his high school football career with 3,204 passing yards, 40 touchdowns, and 18 interceptions.

College career
In 2007, newly hired Michigan State head coach Mark Dantonio recruited Cousins to play for the Spartans. Cousins was redshirted for the 2007 season. In 2008, he spent the season as the back up quarterback to Brian Hoyer. He played in five games passing for a total of 310 yards and two touchdowns and one interception. In 2009, he competed for and won the starting quarterback job against teammate Keith Nichol. He led Michigan State to a 6–7 (4-4) season with 19 touchdowns, nine interceptions and 2,680 passing yards in 12 games. In 2010, he led Michigan State to a 11–2 (7-1) record and won the Big Ten Championship. In 2011 his Michigan State Spartans went 11-3 (7-2) and played in the first ever Big Ten championship game. Cousins was named Second Team All-Big Ten by the coaches, and played his final game as a Michigan State Spartan on January 2, 2012 defeating the Georgia Bulldogs in the Outback Bowl. His teams posted an undefeated 4-0 record against in-state rivals Michigan. Cousins won the 2011 Lowes's Senior CLASS Award

Kirk Cousins drew praise for a speech he delivered at the Big Ten kickoff lunch on behalf of all Big Ten student-athletes

Washington Redskins
In the 2012 NFL Draft, Cousins was selected by the Washington Redskins as the seventh choice in the fourth round, making him the 102nd draft pick overall. The pick surprised many analysts, as the Redskins had drafted 2011 Heisman Trophy winner Robert Griffin III with the second overall pick to be their franchise quarterback. Cousins officially signed with the Redskins on May 31, 2012 to a four-year contract. In the second game of the preseason against the Chicago Bears, Cousins threw three touchdown passes in the fourth quarter, though the Bears would win 33-31. In the fourth and final game of preseason against Tampa Bay Buccaneers, Cousins completed 15-of-27 passes for 222 yards, the Washington Redskins had a 30-3 win. He won the backup quarterback job over incumbent starter Rex Grossman.

Cousins made his NFL debut in the Week 5 loss against the Atlanta Falcons after Griffin left the game late in the third quarter after suffering a concussion. Cousins scored his first touchdown after throwing a 77-yard pass to Santana Moss, but then followed that play by throwing two interceptions in his last two series of the game while trying to tie the score and go into overtime. He would make his second NFL appearance in Week 14 against the Baltimore Ravens. Late in the fourth quarter after Griffin left with a knee injury, Cousins allowed the Redskins to go into a overtime by scoring a 11-yard touchdown pass to Pierre Garçon then following up with a two-point conversion on a quarterback draw that tied the game at 28-28 leading to an overtime period in which rookie cornerback, Richard Crawford, gave the Redskins perfect field goal range after having a 64-yard punt return.

On December 15, 2012, Cousins was announced as the Redskins starter for the Week 15 game against the Cleveland Browns after Griffin went down with an injury, marking his first career start. After a challenging first half, Cousins rallied the team in the second half. Cousins completed 26-of-37 passes for 329 yards with 2 touchdown passes, bringing the Washington Redskins a 38-21 win. Later that week Cousins was voted the Pepsi NFL Rookie of the Week and also the third rookie of the Redskins to do so in the 2012 season, after quarterback Robert Griffin III and running back Alfred Morris.