It’s been a long time since the San Francisco 49ers have played a .500-record Las Vegas Raiders team.

Usually, the Raiders are bottom-feeders. But this year, they’ve gotten themselves out of the dumps. One reason for that is quarterback Kirk Cousins. He’s been sweet this season. 

Entering Week 9, Cousins has thrown for 2,124 yards (third-most), 19 touchdowns (second-most), and only five interceptions. No one could’ve foreseen him performing like this at his age.

But if you were to ask 49ers defensive coordinator Raheem Morris, it wouldn’t surprise him. On Thursday, Morris was asked to share his thoughts on how Cousins has looked this year.

“Kirk's one of the all-time progression quarterbacks that the league has seen,” Morris said. “You go out and you get a guy like Kirk and you get a guy that can operate your offense at a very high level, control things that you want to get controlled. He's a computer during the week. He's taking it all in, going through the process, going through his process.”

“Then once he gets to the game, he's just able to allow himself to go out there and play. He can go through his process and do all the things that's operating. He's operating the right way, particularly at the end of the game and the Jets, big-time game last week for those guys. They started hot and for those guys to pick it up like they did, it's no shock. He's playing with a genuine enthusiasm that I'm used to seeing from him."

Morris spent two seasons with Cousins on the Atlanta Falcons. He’s very familiar with who he is as a person and as a player, having started numerous games for him in Atlanta. 

If anyone can speak on Cousins, it’s Morris. He’s going to give it to you straight with his assessment. That should also give him an edge in defending against Cousins.

However, that was the belief entering Week 7 against the Falcons with Michael Penix Jr. Knowing a player well doesn’t mean the edge will be there, but several factors limited the 49ers’ defense in that game. 

The pass rush is one of them. That won’t be an issue on Sunday against the Raiders. Morris may have a ton of love for Cousins, but come Sunday, he’ll be scheming to make it miserable for him.

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