Vikings don’t sound like a team willing to fall for Sam Darnold’s resurgence

The Minnesota Vikings didn’t have many high expectations this season, especially after JJ McCarthy suffered a knee injury in the first round in his only preseason game. But veteran Sam Darnold, who was supposed to be a bridge quarterback, has shined in his lone season with the Vikings thus far. During the 5-0 start to the season, Darnold looked like a legitimate NFL MVP candidate. Although his production dipped a bit after going 2-2 in his last four games, Darnold is playing at a high enough level to earn a huge contract next season.

With Darnold entering free agency, you have to wonder if the Vikings will try to keep Darnold around. Well, an NFL insider suggests that may not be the case.

While discussing where Darnold could end up in an ESPN+ article next season (subscription required), NFL insider Dan Graziano said he doesn’t expect the Vikings to bring him back. The reasoning behind this move is to continue with McCarthy as the starter.

“I doubt Darnold will end up back in Minnesota, where the Vikings will look to clear the cards for JJ McCarthy once their first-round pick is healthy again,” Graziano wrote. “Of course, never say never, and if McCarthy’s recovery from his knee injury is delayed, who knows? But I suspect someone will want to pay Darnold more than the Vikings, given McCarthy’s status as their future starter.”

ESPN considers Darnold the best quarterback available and the eighth overall free agent for the 2025 league year. The quarterback market, especially in free agency, is quite weak, so Darnold has a viable opportunity to cash in big time for a team in need of a starting signal caller .

While Graziano’s colleague Jeremy Fowler wouldn’t completely take Darnold’s return off the table, the McCarthy factor does play a role. Graziano says doing the same thing next year with McCarthy and Darnold could do the former Michigan quarterback “more harm than good.”

“It is my understanding that the Vikings planned to open the 2024 season with Darnold as the starter even if McCarthy was healthy, but expected to move on to McCarthy as the season progressed,” Graziano wrote. “The injury is a developmental delay, but because he has been in the building for a year it means that McCarthy will be further ahead in August 2025 than he was in August 2024. Bringing back Darnold and redoing the original plan for 2024 would be more could do more harm than good for McCarthy’s team.” development at that time.”

The Vikings moved on from Kirk Cousins ​​last offseason and it was the worst kept secret that they were trying to land a quarterback in the NFL Draft. While Caleb Williams, Jayden Daniels, Drake Maye and Michael Penix Jr. flew off the board, the Vikings traded with the New York Jets for the No. 10 overall pick to select McCarthy in exchange for the No. 11 pick, and their fourth pick. — and fifth-round picks. McCarthy may not have shown much in terms of passing in college, but he did lead Michigan to a national championship.

The plan was to send Darnold to the bench for McCarthy at some point if he didn’t suffer a knee injury. But this season, Darold threw for 2,141 yards, 17 touchdowns and 10 interceptions while completing 68.6 percent of his passes in nine games.

Darnold may be a one-and-done quarterback for the Vikings, but under very different circumstances. In this case, Darnold, like Cousins, could leave for the highest bidder in free agency. From then on, it’s McCarthy’s time to lead the Vikings.