Plenty of Viking fans are left scratching their head following Sam Darnold’s three-interception performance on Sunday against the Jaguars. Minnesota got the job done and won 12-7 against Jacksonville, but Darnold arguably played his worst Viking game.
Darnold is tied with Geno Smith and Jordan Love for last in the league with 10 interceptions thrown. There was a reason the Vikings drafted Michigan quarterback J.J. McCarthy to become their new franchise quarterback, and even if Darnold can get back on track, it’s unlikely he will be in Minnesota after this year.
What Allen eludes to is the main issue with Darnold returning to the Vikings in 2025. It has nothing to do with his play but rather with the salary cap implications. Darnold is likely to get a contract earning between $20-$30 million a year from a team needing a quality starter, which Darnold has proven to be.
“I mean, if Sam Darnold wins the Super Bowl as quarterback of the Minnesota Vikings, he’s not getting 100 million guaranteed here,” Paul Allen said on KFAN1003. “He’s not, because Kwesi in that group has worked so hard for two and a half years to get salary cap flexibility. And in essence, jettison picks in certain parts of the draft to get Greenard, to get Van Ginkel, to get Cashman.”
The Vikings and Kwesi Adofo-Mensah are in prime posit[anyclip-media thumbnail=”undefined” playlistId=”undefined” content=”dW5kZWZpbmVk”][/anyclip-media]ion to make a splash in free agency, with a projected $76 million available to them. That will allow them to re-sign and extend some core players while also going out and addressing some team needs.
Bringing Darnold back makes those two goals more challenging for a franchise that has shown efficiency in player management.