Sam Darnold DVOA, Advanced Stats, & Fantasy Rankings

ESPN's Kevin Seifert reports that the Minnesota Vikings are in no rush to place the franchise tag on impending free-agent quarterback Sam Darnold despite his career year in 2024. It doesn't mean they won't eventually use it on the 27-year-old signal-caller, and it doesn't rule out the team giving him a multi-year extension. Another option is that the Vikings tag Darnold and then trade him for draft-pick compensation. Keeping Darnold on the tag in 2025 would cost Minnesota around $40 million, which would be a questionable decision with former first-rounder J.J. McCarthy (knee) waiting in the wings as the franchise QB. Seifert believes the most likely scenario is that the team lets Darnold sign elsewhere while saving the tag for a player like cornerback Byron Murphy Jr., who had a career-high six interceptions in 2024. Darnold set career-highs last year across the board but also had just one TD and a 53% completion percentage in the last two games.

In Minnesota Vikings head coach Kevin O'Connell's Coach of the Year news conference, he said, "Our goal is to win a championship and Sam Darnold is going to be a huge part of it when we do it," When asked to clarify, O'Connell said that Darnold has "earned the right to be a free agent, but we will continue to have ongoing dialogue and discussions with him and his representation." O'Connell went back on his comments a bit and said his previous comments about Darnold were made "in the spirit of answering a question about Darnold's season." Darnold had a career season in 2024, but his struggles in the final two games might make the Vikings more apt to give first-rounder J.J. McCarthy a shot in 2025 and let another team spend on Darnold. The Vikings also have former Giants QB Daniel Jones as an insurance policy in case they let Darnold walk in free agency.

ESPN's Jeremy Fowler writes that the Minnesota Vikings haven't made a firm determination on impending free-agent quarterback Sam Darnold's future with the organization. Darnold exceeded all expectations in 2024, and bringing him back is a stronger possibility that it was five or six months ago. However, the Vikings have a cap on what they'll spend on the QB position, especially after he struggled to close out the year. Some agents think Darnold shouldn't take a penny less than Daniel Jones' four-year, $160 million deal with the New York Giants two years ago. He could get something similar to Baker Mayfield's three-year, $100 million deal, or the Vikes could slap the $35.3 million transition tag on him. Darnold threw for 4,319 yards, 35 TDs and 12 interceptions in 17 games, but his struggles in the final two games will ultimately cost him a lot of money on the open market. Whether the Vikings keep him will depend on how confident they are in J.J. McCarthy and Jones.

According to Alec Lewis of The Athletic, the Las Vegas Raiders are considered a potential suitor for quarterback Sam Darnold. Lewis also mentioned that the Seattle Seahawks, Pittsburgh Steelers, Minnesota Vikings, and the New York Giants could also pursue Darnold in free agency. Lewis noted that among the teams that need a quarterback, no team has more cap space than the Raiders. In addition, with new head coach Pete Carroll, they may opt to pair him with a veteran quarterback. This past season, the Raiders relied on Gardner Minshew and Aidan O'Connell under center and could only win four games. The Raiders also hold the No. 6 pick in the 2025 NFL Draft and could look to pair a rookie quarterback with Darnold. Last season, Darnold enjoyed a career season as he led the Vikings to a 14-3 record. He threw for 4,319 yards and 35 passing scores with 12 interceptions.

Minnesota Vikings quarterback Sam Darnold resurrected his career by leading the Vikings to 14 wins in 2024 while posting career-highs in passing yards (4,319) and touchdowns (35), but he came crashing down hard in losses to the Detroit Lions in Week 18 and the Los Angeles Rams in the wild-card round in which he had a combined 23 off-target throws and took 11 sacks. Darnold's future is now as unsettled as ever as he heads toward free agency in March, but ESPN's Jeremy Fowler writes that Darnold is still the top free-agent QB. The teams that Fowler has spoken with recently forecasted Darnold in the Geno Smith/Baker Mayfield weight class of contracts. Mayfield got a three-year, $100 million deal last offseason with Tampa, while Smith signed a three-year, $75 million deal before the 2023 season. Darnold tanked to end the year, but he did enough to find work as a starter somewhere else if Minnesota doesn't want him back.