Anyone who played against the Vikings over the past six years had to prepare to face Kirk Cousins. That’s over now.

For the first time since 2018, a new starting quarterback will wear the Vikings’ purple.

The Giants may see Sam Darnold in a different uniform on Sunday in his first regular season appearance for his new team.

“Sam is a good friend and I always root for him, (but) not this week, but throughout his career,” Giants right guard Greg Van Roten told The Post. “I’m happy to see him succeed. I know what it’s like to bounce around a little bit. We’re friends and I want him to succeed professionally, but not in the first week against us.”

Van Roten and Darnold were teammates on the Jets in 2020, Darnold’s third and final season with the team that made him the third overall pick in the 2018 draft.

Darnold went 2-10 in his 12 starts, and head coach Adam Gase was fired after a 2-14 season.

“He was in a difficult situation in New York,” Van Roten said. “A couple of different coordinators, different coaches. Stability is very important in the NFL, continuity is very important and if you don’t have that as a young player, it can hinder your growth and development.”

Darnold joined the Panthers, where he went 8-9 in his starts in 2021 and 2022. He spent the 2023 season on the 49ers bench, learning but rarely playing in Kyle Shanahan’s rugged system.

“I think it was good for him to be with Shanahan for a year,” Van Roten said, “and now he has another really good, quarterback-friendly coach in a system that has proven to be successful when you run it right.”

The Vikings selected JJ McCarthy from Michigan with the No. 10 pick in the 2024 draft. McCarthy will miss the rest of the season with a torn meniscus in his right knee, and coach Kevin O’Connell will have to rely on Darnold, who at 27 will get another chance to play on offense.

As a starting quarterback he is 21-35.

The Giants faced star WR Justin Jefferson twice in the 2022 season.

He caught 12 passes for 133 yards and a touchdown in a Vikings win on Dec. 24, and a few weeks later he limited himself to seven catches for 47 yards in the Giants’ NFC wild-card win in Minneapolis.

CB Adoree’ Jackson was primarily the defender against Jefferson in this postseason game and was re-signed last week.

The Vikings also have WR Jordan Addison, who received 10 touchdowns as a rookie in 2023, but are without Pro Bowl TE TJ Hockenson, who led the Vikings with 90 catches last season.

He tore his ACL in a game against the Giants late last season and is on the physically unable to perform list.

A key for the Giants: dealing with RB Aaron Jones.

He topped 100 yards in his final five games for the Packers last season, including two playoff games.

The Vikings gave him a one-year, $7 million contract to improve their offense, which finished 29th in the league last season.

Two linebackers, Carter Coughlin and Ty Summers, were promoted from the practice squad and will likely take on special teams roles in the game. LB Curtis Bolton was released.