When will Sam Darnold turn back into Sam Darnold?
Just admit it, you’ve asked yourself that question this season as the Minnesota Vikings, led by the resurgence of Darnold, have surged to an 11-2 record to establish themselves as legitimate Super Bowl contenders.
Yes, the uber-aggressive defense, led by madman-coordinator Brian Flores, has done some amazing things on that side of the ball to get the Vikings to this point, but Darnold’s play running the offense is every bit the reason why they sit one game behind the Detroit Lions in the NFC North.
Like you, I didn’t see it coming.
Like you, I was wrong.
Where in Darnold’s past did anybody see this coming? Vikings head coach Kevin O’Connell, who is rapidly becoming one of the best offensive minds in the league, has made Darnold an MVP candidate. Darnold threw five touchdown passes Sunday as the Vikings beat the Atlanta Falcons and former Vikings quarterback Kirk Cousins in a blowout that showed the better of those two quarterbacks wears purple.
The Vikings are fourth in my Power Rankings this week, but Darnold’s up to No. 1 in things I didn’t see coming this season.
Darnold is sixth in the league in passing yards with 3,299 and has 28 touchdown passes to place him tied for third in the league with Baker Mayfield, five away from leader Joe Burrow, one behind Lamar Jackson and five ahead of MVP favorite Josh Allen. Darnold came into the year with 27 touchdown passes in his previous four seasons combined.
The Vikings probably won’t admit this, but they went into the season thinking Darnold would be little more than a stop-gap starter until rookie first-round pick J.J. McCarthy was ready. McCarthy was lost for the year in training camp, and Darnold has taken advantage of the opportunity.
The Vikings signed Darnold to a one-year, $10 million contract, which means he will be a free agent after the season. The way things are playing out now, the Vikings would likely have to pay him a deal that would average $30-$35 million a season. But if he keeps playing the way he did Sunday, it makes that decision a tough one with McCarthy clearly the quarterback of the future.
The tough part of the decision is an obvious one: In the back of everyone’s minds, and the minds of the Vikings brass if you put them on a lie detector, is the question we all ask now.
When does Sam Darnold turn back into Sam Darnold?
It doesn’t look like he will. Maybe this is the Sam Darnold the Jets thought they’d get when they drafted him in the first round in 2018, and all it took was a great system, a great offensive mind and star receivers to get it out of him.
The old Sam Darnold just might be gone forever. He’s certainly playing that way, and the Vikings will be a tough offense to stop come playoff time.
| 1 | Lions | Dan Campbell needs to stop with the fourth-down decisions. This team is too good for that. Now they face a big one with the Bills. | — | 12-1-0 |
| 2 | Chiefs | They won another close game against the Chargers with a field goal off the upright to win it. Winning close games will get them ready for the playoffs, which this group knows a lot about. | 1 | 12-1-0 |
| 3 | Eagles | It wasn’t pretty against the Panthers, but good teams have games like that. The good news is they still found a way to win it. | 1 | 11-2-0 |
| 4 | Vikings | After a home game with the Bears, their schedule toughens down the stretch with a road game at Seattle, a home game against the Packers and a road game at the Lions. We will find out a lot about this team in the final four games. | 1 | 11-2-0 |
| 5 | Bills | Even Josh Allen and his amazing play couldn’t overcome the bad showing by the defense in the loss to the Rams. Now that defense will be tested again by the explosive Lions this week. | 3 | 10-3-0 |
| 6 | Steelers | They keep on winning games and continue to be the team to beat in the NFC North. They face a tough one this week with the Eagles on the road for bragging rights in Pennsylvania. | 1 | 10-3-0 |
| 7 | Packers | They’ve lost four games to three of the top teams in the league by a combined 20 points. They will be a wild-card team, but they will be a dangerous one that can go on a run. | 1 | 9-4-0 |
| 8 | Ravens | They come off their bye at 8-5 and two games behind the Steelers, but they play them in two weeks. They have to get the offense back on track after that pre-bye showing against the Eagles. | 1 | 8-5-0 |
| 9 | Chargers | That was a tough loss to the Chiefs on the road, but they rallied back and the defense played well, which has been their calling card all year. At 8-5, they would be the sixth seed right now. | 1 | 8-5-0 |
| 10 | Seahawks | This team is surging with four straight victories to take command of the NFC West. The defense has really come alive as they ready to face the Packers. | 1 | 8-5-0 |
| 11 | Broncos | They come off their bye with a monster game in terms of playoff seeding against the Colts. Win it, and they are basically a playoff team. | 1 | 8-5-0 |
| 12 | Commanders | They sit in the seventh spot in the playoff race coming off their bye, and the schedule is favorable the final four weeks. The bye had to be good for the continued improved health of quarterback Jayden Daniels. | — | 8-5-0 |
| 13 | Rams | They are making their usual late-season surge under Sean McVay. Getting guys back healthy on offense has really changed this team’s dynamic as they head to a big game against the 49ers on Sunday. | 4 | 7-6-0 |
| 14 | Buccaneers | They are in first place in the NFC South with four games to go. This team is one that nobody else will want in the postseason come playoff time. They are getting healthy. | 1 | 7-6-0 |
| 15 | Texans | They come off a much-needed bye leading the division, but they haven’t played like a playoff team much of this season. The next four weeks has to be about getting right for the playoffs. | 1 | 8-5-0 |
| 16 | Colts | They come off their bye with essentially what is a playoff game at Denver vs. the Broncos. They can’t lose it if they are to have any chance to be a playoff team. | — | 6-7-0 |
| 17 | Cardinals | Three straight losses has their playoff chances in big trouble. The defense just doesn’t have enough talent — even if they play hard and tough. | 4 | 6-7-0 |
| 18 | Dolphins | They didn’t play well against the Jets, but found a way to win it in overtime. The defense had a rough go of it against a bad Jets offense. | — | 6-7-0 |
| 19 | 49ers | They kept their playoff chances alive with an impressive victory over the Bears. Now they face a big one against the rival Rams. | 1 | 6-7-0 |
| 20 | Bengals | It’s funny how they can win games when the defense makes plays. The offense is unstoppable at times. Joe Burrow is slinging it. | 1 | 5-8-0 |
| 21 | Falcons | Kirk Cousins has eight picks and no touchdowns in the past four games. This team is reeling and now out of the playoffs. | 2 | 6-7-0 |
| 22 | Bears | So much for the idea that firing Matt Eberflus would get this thing turned around. They were even worse in the loss to the 49ers. | — | 4-9-0 |
| 23 | Saints | Derek Carr is now likely out with an injury, which puts the exclamation point on a terrible season all the way around for this team. They have battled for Darren Rizzi, which is a good thing. | 1 | 5-8-0 |
| 24 | Browns | The good feeling about Jameis Winston has gone away after two straight losses. It’s not him, but the losing can make the good times go away. | 1 | 3-10-0 |
| 25 | Panthers | They are playing better, which is a good sign going forward. Playing the Eagles even on the road was impressive. | 1 | 3-10-0 |
| 26 | Cowboys | They found a new way to lose a game Monday night to the Bengals. This season is over — and now comes the questions about changes to the coaching staff. | 3 | 5-8-0 |
| 27 | Jaguars | They did the dumb thing and went out and beat the Titans. Now the top draft pick is slipping away from them. | 5 | 3-10-0 |
| 28 | Titans | Scoring six points against the Jaguars is not a good look. Will Levis had to be better and the heat might be on head coach Brian Callahan. | 1 | 3-10-0 |
| 29 | Patriots | They had a good bye week. Why? Teams with better draft slots won this past weekend, so the Pats draft slot improved. That’s winning without playing. | 1 | 3-10-0 |
| 30 | Jets | At least they showed some fight in losing to Miami in overtime. But where has that been all season? | 1 | 3-10-0 |
| 31 | Giants | They would have the second pick in the draft if it started today. That’s a good thing. Get a quarterback. | 1 | 2-11-0 |
| 32 | Raiders | Aidan O’Connell got injured against Tampa Bay, which means he might not be available against the Falcons. They need to find a long-term answer at quarterback. | 1 | 2-11-0 |
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Author: Pete Prisco
December 10, 2024 | 6:10 am
