Minnesota Vikings Quarterback Situation

In my mind, the Minnesota Vikings quarterback situation in 2025 was decided when J.J. McCarthy was selected with the 10th pick of the 2024 NFL Draft. Sam Darnold was signed before that draft to be the bridge quarterback in case the rookie wasn’t ready. As things played out, McCarthy was probably ready to start but he suffered a torn meniscus in the first preseason game. The surgery to repair it wiped out his rookie season. Darnold was the Vikings quarterback in 2024. He played well. He guided the team to a 14-3 regular season record. All was wonderful until the final two games of the season. In my mind, Darnold could’ve guided the Vikings to the Lombardi Trophy and McCarthy would still be the quarterback in 2025. It’s probably a controversial thought but it’s what I believed and still believe. General manager Kwesi Adofo-Mensah and head coach Kevin O’Connell were hired in 2022 with the current quarterback situation in their sights, a talented team with a talented quarterback on a rookie deal. It’s the situation that nearly all teams seek. There’s a lot that can be done with a roster without the strains of a hefty quarterback contract. 

So, here we are. One of the most annoying aspects of this offseason has been the constant chirping about whether the Vikings would slap the franchise tag on Sam Darnold. That was never going to happen. There was no way that they would commit $40 million to a quarterback. They had just gotten out from under the weight of Kirk Cousin’s deal. If the Vikings were just going to jump underneath another weighty, and questionable, quarterback deal, what was the point of the last three seasons of preparation? With so few draft picks in the coming draft, a tag and trade would’ve been nice but that never felt realistic. When the franchise tag deadline passed without a Darnold tag, I hoped that the chirping would stop. Nope! Always the drama-seeker, Pro Football Talk’s Mike Florio kept tossing out the “trade McCarthy’s, keep Darnold” possibility. That was stupid in all ways possible. Even respected insiders like Ian Rapoport and Tom Pelissero were talking about the Vikings continuing to negotiate with Darnold’s people. Sure. The Vikings would love to have Darnold back on a contract similar to last year. That was never going to happen. He played his way to a contract far beyond the $10 million he played on last year. Darnold was never going to come back to Minnesota. It doesn’t work for the Vikings. It doesn’t work for Darnold. Report that. 

Yesterday, I finally got some relief from this constant Darnold-Vikings chirping. The Seattle Seahawks traded quarterback Geno Smith to the Las Vegas Raiders for a third-round pick. That opened up Seattle as a possible destination for Darnold. Several of the league’s insiders started reporting that. Even Florio ran with this trade solving the Vikings quarterback dilemma. There was never a dilemma! The Vikings and Darnold were always going their separate ways this offseason. It’s J.J. McCarthy’s time. It’s been that way since he was drafted with the 10th pick of the 2024 NFL Draft. 

Free agency can’t get here soon enough. Just a couple more days.