Here’s what O’Connell had to say when asked to clarify his earlier comments:
“I don’t think what I said was completely accurate. It was meant to address a question about Sam’s season and what he was able to accomplish this year. The follow-up question about what it will take to win a championship came after that. You all know how I feel about Sam. We identified him last year as someone who could come in and succeed, no matter where he came from before. It was about making the most of our time together, and I believe we did that. This was a special year for Sam, and because of that, everyone in the league now sees him as a legitimate starting quarterback who can win a lot of games. He won 14 of them. He’s earned the right to be a free agent. However, we’ll continue to have conversations with him and his representation. We’re also excited about J.J. McCarthy’s progress in his rehab—he’s come a long way as the true offseason begins. We’re lucky to have him, and even considering Daniel Jones was also in that quarterback room with Brett Rypien and Nick Mullens, we have great depth. I’ve talked about that all season. Now, we’ll see what that quarterback room looks like as we try to build the best possible team for 2025. That’s really what the answer should’ve been, and I probably didn’t fully express that. My feelings about Sam Darnold and what he achieved this season haven’t changed, and I’m proud to have been with him every step of the way.”
So, after all that, it looks like there’s no major twist. We’re back to where we started.
I’ll leave the original story up, along with this clarification, and apologize for jumping the gun without all the context that O’Connell later provided. The original story is below the break.
At Thursday night’s NFL Honors ceremony, Minnesota Vikings head coach Kevin O’Connell was named NFL Coach of the Year for the 2024 season, which wasn’t unexpected.
What O’Connell said afterward in his press conference, however, was quite surprising.
O’Connell said:
“Our goal is to win a championship, and Sam Darnold will be a huge part of it when we do.”
Well, that certainly caught me off guard.
As we know, Darnold is set to hit free agency after reviving his career under O’Connell this past season. He threw 35 touchdown passes in 2024, nearly doubling his previous career-high, and played a key role in leading the Vikings to a 14-3 record and keeping them in the hunt for the top seed in the conference all the way into Week 18. For a signing that was mocked when it happened last March, it turned out to be a highly successful run.
However, the Vikings also have young J.J. McCarthy waiting in the wings, after he missed his rookie season due to a meniscus tear, and it seemed like they were preparing to hand the reins over to McCarthy in 2025, especially since Darnold’s contract demands were expected to be beyond their budget.
I’m not sure if O’Connell is trying to throw other teams off or if he knows something we don’t. He certainly knows more than we do in general, but this specific statement feels a little odd. Re-signing Darnold would eat into the team’s salary cap space heading into the offseason, so it’s surprising to hear O’Connell talk as if Darnold’s return in 2025 is a given.
The Sam Darnold situation was already set to be the major storyline for the Vikings’ offseason leading up to free agency. Now, thanks to the head coach himself, that story just became a whole lot more intriguing.
Leave a Reply