2 Main Clues about Sam Darnold’s Future

Shaun Brooks-Imagn Pictures.

In three weeks, onlookers of Minnesota Vikings soccer will be taught with certainty if quarterback Sam Darnold will return for a sequel season in 2025.

2 Main Clues about Sam Darnold’s Future

The betting market means that the QB1 job will belong to J.J. McCarthy, drafted by Minnesota 10 months in the past because the franchise’s future. However McCarthy tore his meniscus final August, permitting Darnold to carry the QB1 job all season, and for essentially the most half, thrive.

Jeffrey Becker-Imagn Pictures.

Darnold threw for 35 touchdowns, 12 interceptions, and 4,319 passing yards earlier than vanishing within the remaining two video games of the season. The person even flirted with fringe MVP consideration. Most Vikings followers, although, determined that McCarthy represented a wiser possibility in 2025 as a result of he might not soften within the playoffs like Darnold did versus the Los Angeles Rams.

Now, because of Kevin O’Connell’s phrases and intel from ESPN, Darnold’s future might already be clear.

Kevin O’Connell’s Trace

Per a latest O’Connell quote, the younger coach may’ve already predicted the result: letting Darnold enterprise to free company with no extension or franchise tag-and-trade.

Kareem Elgazzar/The Enquirer-USA TODAY Sports activities.

“Look, you guys know how I feel about Sam. He is a guy that we identified last year as somebody who could come in and be successful. And really no matter where he was at before he arrived in his quarterback journey, it was about maximizing our time together,” O’Connell mentioned about Darnold every week and a half in the past.

“And I think we did that, and I think it was a very special year for Sam. And what that earned him is, everybody in our league now thinks he’s a bona fide legitimate starting quarterback and can win a lot of football games. He won 14 of them.”

That was excessive reward for the 2024 QB1. However then O’Connell bought to the chase: “So he’s earned the right to be a free agent, but we will continue to have ongoing dialogue and discussions with him and his representation.”

Steve Roberts-Imagn Pictures.

O’Connell’s phrases — incomes the suitable to be a free agent — is a cat-out-of-the-bag revelation. It’s as if he already is aware of the choice to no contract extension is sure-fire free company.

ESPN’s Clue

ESPN’s Kevin Seifert revealed Monday about Minnesota’s utility of the franchise tag, “Using the tag on quarterback Sam Darnold would be an expensive way of ensuring his return while avoiding a longer-term commitment that would hinder J.J. McCarthy’s eventual ascension. It could also be a way to elicit additional value by way of a trade, but that would require a knowledge that multiple teams would be willing to bid.”

Matt Krohn-Imagn Pictures.

Groups can begin utilizing the franchise tag on Tuesday, February 18th.

“In the end, the Vikings seem more likely to let Darnold sign elsewhere and preserve their tag for a player such as cornerback Byron Murphy Jr., who had a career-high six interceptions in 2024 and is hitting his prime at age 27. If nothing else, it would give the Vikings time to sign Murphy to a longer-term deal while keeping him off the market,” Seifert added.

Normal Supervisor Kwesi Adofo-Mensah in August of 2022 at Minnesota headquarters in Eagan, Minnesota.

If Murphy is the popular franchise tag goal as an alternative of Darnold, nicely, an NFL squad can solely use the tag as soon as per 12 months.

The dialogue concerning Darnold appears to trace he’ll hit free company and keep away from a franchise tag or commerce.

Dustin Baker is a political scientist who graduated from the College of Minnesota in 2007. Subscribe to his each day YouTube Channel, VikesNow. The present options friends, evaluation, and opinion on all issues associated to the purple workforce, with 4-7 episodes per week. His MIN obsession dates again to 1996. Listed responsible pleasures: Peanut Butter Ice Cream, ‘The Sopranos,’ Basset Hounds, and The Doorways (the band). He follows the NBA as carefully because the NFL. 

All statistics supplied by Professional Soccer Reference / Stathead; all contractual data supplied by OverTheCap.com.