The Minnesota Vikings have a big decision to make.
Sam Darnold played like a legitimate franchise-caliber player for most of the season.
He didn’t end the season on a high note, though, some believe the team would be better off moving on from him.
Nonetheless, team analyst Benjamin Solak believes the Vikings will look to keep him around (via The Purple Persuasion).
“I really, truly believe the Vikings will extend [Sam] Darnold”, per @BenjaminSolak
Solak believes Darnold will sign a 4-year / $160M deal and wouldn’t be surprised if the @Vikings “quietly look to trade [J.J. McCarthy] ahead of a bad QB draft class and see if a needy team takes… pic.twitter.com/3M0adYCJxD
— The Purple Persuasion (@TPPSkol) January 20, 2025
Apparently, the Vikings will look to sign him to a 4-year deal worth $160 million.
That means that they could also look to move on from J.J. McCarthy.
McCarthy could gauge a strong interest around the league.
This draft class is weak at the quarterback position, and multiple teams were quite high on McCarthy last season.
Of course, both moves could come with some risk.
On the one hand, you never know how rookies will pan out, and he’s coming off a major injury.
On the other hand, Darnold has had his fair share of struggles for most of his career, and he didn’t look good in the two biggest games of the season.
The Vikings proved to be much better than most people thought this season, and they might not be as far from being in contention for the Super Bowl as analysts and fans initially thought.
That could incline them to get someone to help them win right now, and Darnold could be that guy.
He’s also not that old, so if things work out, he could lead the way for them for years to come.
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