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The Minnesota Vikings' fairytale season came to an end in dramatic fashion. Minnesota lost 27-9 against Los Angeles on Monday Night Football in a game that felt decided by halftime. This led to Vikings reporters asking some tough questions after the game, especially considering the team was 14-3 entering the playoffs.
One reporter asked Sam Darnold how much he thought his performance over the past few games will impact his future. Darnold gave a somewhat cryptic response when talking about what comes next.
“Yeah, I mean I'm not worried about that. That's in the past. Right now I'm thinking about what I could have done better today and just really spending time with the guys in the locker room,” Darnold said. “That's really all I'm focused on right now.”
Darnold made it clear that he wants to spend as much time as he can with this Vikings team before thinking about the future.
“At the end of the day, in the NFL, you only get one season with one team with everyone together. Today wasn't our day. It's as simple as that. For me, I'm just going to be focused on spending as much time as I can with those guys in the locker room. And then I'll think about whatever the future holds after that.”
Just a few weeks ago, it felt like an inevitability that Minnesota would retain Darnold on a massive contract extension. However, his poor play over the last two games might give the organization pause.
Regardless, Darnold showed that he is capable of playing like a great quarterback during the 2024 season. If the Vikings do not re-sign him, he will have a healthy market during free agency.
Kevin O'Connell weighs in on Vikings' quarterback conundrum
The future of the quarterback position in Minnesota is currently up in the air.
The Vikings will lean heavily on head coach Kevin O'Connell to decide whether Minnesota should re-sign Sam Darnold or proceed with J.J. McCarthy.
O'Connell said it is “very important that we all think of Sam's body of work” over the 2024 season when making a decision.
“What he was able to do this year, when not very many people thought he would be able to lead a team to 14 wins, which is rare,” O'Connell said via ESPN's Kevin Seifert. “The way he came in, committed himself to just a daily process to be the best version of himself. It did not work out in the end. I think Sam would be the first one to tell you. Could he have played better tonight? I'm sure he would tell you he could have. Could I have coached better? I promise you I could have. Could our team have rallied around a play here and there to keep it close? For sure.”
It will be interesting to see how the Vikings approach the upcoming offseason, especially at the quarterback position.
