EAGAN, Minn. — Twenty-four hours after having breakfast in Las Vegas, Kirk Cousins did so in Minnesota.

In his return to the Vikings facility after being acquired after via trade, Cousins told media members he was "about halfway into my eggs" Tuesday morning when he received a phone call from Raiders Head Coach Klint Kubiak.

"I looked at my teammates and said, 'I have a guess what this might mean.' Although, he calls on occasion," Cousins said. "[Kubiak] said, 'Are you in the building?' I said, 'I am.' He said, 'Why don't you come up?' And my heart started beating a little faster."

Cousins spoke with Kubiak and Raiders General Manager John Spytek, who told the veteran quarterback about trade conversations with the Vikings. According to Cousins, the Raiders brass put the ball in Cousins' court on whether he would like to stay in Las Vegas or head back to Minnesota, where he played from 2018-23.

Cousins called Vikings Head Coach Kevin O'Connell — who simultaneously was trying to dial the QB — and had a conversation that confirmed the decision for them both.

"Kevin knows me. Kevin knows what I do well. Kevin knows what I don't do well," Cousins said. "Kevin knows what I can handle. Kevin knows what I can't handle. And I think that helps. Not just that he knows your strengths, but that he knows your weaknesses — and that as a result, he's going to try to protect you and not have you do things that he knows, 'You know what? That's not how Kirk functions. That's not his best chance of success.'

"I think the fact he knows me well, the good about me and the bad about me, I think that should help us," Cousins added.

Through nine games with the Raiders this season, Cousins is 202-of-315 passing (64.1%) for 2,340 yards with 20 touchdowns to eight interceptions and a passer rating of 97.1. He now joins the 6-2 Vikings in a battle for a contentious decision and potential postseason berth.

"I'm not too interested in completely starting over," Cousins responded when asked about whether he would have considered a trade to any other teams. "I want to play with … you've got to play off reaction and instinct. And if you're thinking, I don't think you can quite be the player that you otherwise could be. So to me, it's important to be able to be at a place that you feel you at least have the potential to do that."

While Cousins works on the Vikings playbook, his family is prepping for life back in the Midwest.

He shared an anecdote to illustrate the excitement that's shared by his wife Julie and sons, Cooper and Turner, noting Julie had initially said, "I don't think we can pull the boys out of school and baseball and their friends."

"But she picked them up from school and said, 'Here's the situation. Dad got traded to the Minnesota Vikings. What would you guys like to do?' And they looked at her and said, 'Let's go,' " Cousins recounted. "They're ready and excited for the next several weeks."

The 38-year-old smiled throughout his press conference, whether referencing his family or familiarity not only with the Vikings facility and coaching staff but also several teammates.

Cousins noted it "did my heart good" to see the likes of Justin Jefferson, Harrison Smith, Brian O'Neill, Christian Darrisaw and others, including members of the Vikings communications staff.

He joked about reuniting with fellow 2012 NFL Draft classmate Smith, who signed on Sept. 8 for his 15^th season with Minnesota.

"I texted [Smith] through nine weeks of OTAs and a six-week training camp when I saw he signed and I said, 'Well, you played that masterfully,' " Cousins laughed. "He and I always talked about winning the long game. Guys in this league win the short game here and there, and they have some attention for a short amount of time, but I always said, 'It's about winning the long game. You're going to have your licks and have your issues, but can you win the long game?'

"Harrison's a guy who's won the long game, and that's a goal of mine in this career," Cousins said. "So when I texted him, he texted back, 'I'm trying to win the long game.' So that was a good wink to me, and it was good to see him today."

Cousins is already hard at work in Minnesota pursuing that goal.

It starts with resuming his speed in the Vikings offense, which is far from foreign but certainly has evolved over the past two-and-a-half seasons.

"We're diving in and making the most of our time," he said of working with O'Connell and the Vikings offensive coaching staff. "I remember when we traded for T.J. (Hockenson) in '22 and thinking I didn't envy him at that time, how much he had to do and how much he had to get caught up on, and the effort the coaches put in to help him. I find myself in a similar role today."

Even for a quarterback of Cousins' experience and with his knowledge within the Vikings system, it will be a quick turnaround for Minnesota's Week 10 contest at Green Bay (6-3) Sunday.

O'Connell acknowledged the ultimate target would be starting Cousins against the division rival — but also said he wants to "be fair to Kirk and make sure he feels good about it going into Lambeau Field."

Asked if he feels prepared to be the Vikings QB this weekend, Cousins replied, "It's a fair question to ask; I don't think I can give you a fair answer because of how early in the week it is. So, I've got to get to work."

Starting Sunday would be significant for Cousins, though.

Ironically, the last game he played for the Vikings was at Lambeau Field in October 2023, and a torn Achilles suffered during that Border Battle ended his season.

"I think knowing that was where I was carted off and had thoughts of, 'Is this my last game? Is this my last game as a Viking?' … To be back there wearing Purple and Gold, it has meaning," Cousins said. "But you have to go make it mean something with the way you play."

The return to Lambeau Field will feel full-circle for Cousins, whose 15-year career thus far has spanned four NFL franchises. The journey has included high highs and low lows, lessons learned, leaderboards climbed and victories. Through it all, his love for the game hasn't diminished.

" 'Joy' is a good word to use," he said. "I think I play my best when there's a lot of joy, and I think also when there's a little bit of edge. So, you try to find that sweet spot. I think that comparison is the thief of joy, and there's so much in this league that is all about comparison and where you rank … That's just part of the job, and it's understandable and it needs to be there, but you understand if you get caught up in that world, it can take your joy pretty quick.

"I think it's about trying to learn how to maintain that joy despite the fact you're going to always be in a fishbowl and always be compared," Cousins added. "That's something — it's always a challenge, but I look forward to embracing that challenge the next several weeks."

Does Cousins feel he has unfinished business in Minnesota?

He thought for a brief second before answering, "I think my whole career's felt like unfinished business."

"I don't know that I would say today is any different than so many other years or moments where you feel like you've got something to prove, you've got something to accomplish, and there's more to go get," Cousins said. "I think that was why, even this winter, I felt like I wanted to go back and play again; I felt like there was more meat on the bone.

"I didn't quite know what that needed to be, but I just felt like there was more to go get," he added. "And so we find ourselves here today."

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