The Vikings of Minnesota have seen one of their best seasons in the history of the franchise crashed in the blink of an eye this season. After the week 17, the Vikings were 14-2 and played for the seeded n ° 1 in the NFC and the NFC North title, but two consecutive defeats against the Strait Lions in the week 18 and the Rams of Los Angeles in The Wild Card Round of the playoffs sent them back early.
The quarter-Arrière Sam Darnold was at the center of the Vikings climb and their collapse. He played the best football in his career for 16 games to bring them to this week 18 to Detroit, but he looked too much like his old self (in the wrong direction) in both defeats to end the Minnesota season. Now, the Vikings have a very difficult decision to make with Darnold, who is a free agent this offseason.
Despite uncertainty, Darnold does not rush While the offseason begins, according to Josh Alper of Pro Football Talk.
“I thought about it a bit,” said Darnold, by Alper. “I’m not going to share anything about what I thought or the conversations I have been in camera. There are obviously a lot that will still happen, even after the Super Bowl. I will continue to speak to my agent and understand things from there. »»
Why should Vikings move forward with JJ McCarthy
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Sam Darnold was great for the Vikings for most of this season, but the last two games showed why Minnesota had to roll with the young guy in 2025 and left Darnold walking in the free agency. JJ McCarthy gives the Vikings a younger and cheaper option which will allow them to have financial flexibility to continue to improve the list around it.
It may be unfair to judge Darnold on the basis of two games, but the Vikings showed that they had a team capable of participating in a championship. In the two biggest games of the season, Darnold returned to his shell and lacked open throws, not seeing the receivers open and taking bags of killers.
With the way their team is set up, the Vikings cannot take the chance that it will happen again. McCarthy is perhaps a slight step back in all of what Darnold gave them last season, especially at the start of his career, but Kevin O’Connell showed that he can facilitate the life of his quarter -Arrière and rely on its stars for production.
In addition, McCarthy is still a very young and talented player even after having missed all his recruit season due to a knee injury. If he can enter quickly and build the same level of comfort in the plan of O’Connell he had in Michigan, this offense could resume where it stopped last season.
