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The future of Sam Darnold on the Minnesota Vikings is uncertain, but there felt like it could be hope after head coach Kevin O’Connell talking about the team. After being named Coach of the Year, O’Connell said their goal was to win a championship, and Darnold was going to be a big part of it when they do it.
That message may have caught some people off guard, as Darnold is a free agent and many didn’t know if the Vikings would re-sign him. Later on, O’Connell was asked about the statement that he made and cleared up anything that could have been taken out of proportion.
“I don’t necessarily think that 100 percent accurate, O’Connell said via ESPN’s Kevin Seifert. “It was in the spirit of answering a question about Sam’s season and what he was able to do this year. And then the follow up in regards to what it’s going to take to win a championship. Look, you guys know how I feel about Sam. He is a guy that we identified last year as somebody who could come in and be successful. And really no matter where he was at before he arrived in his quarterback journey, it was about maximizing our time together. And I think we did that and I think it was a very special year for Sam.”
O’Connell went on to say that Darnold has earned the right to be a free agent after proving that he can help a team win a lot of games.
Kevin O’Connell continued to go in-depth about Sam Darnold and how he feels about him.
“I talked about it all season long, about the depth of that quarterback room this year, O’Connell said. “But now we’ve got to see what that room is going to look like as we try to put together the best possible team for 2025. That’s really what the answer should have been, and probably it was closer to that, but that doesn’t take away from my feelings for Sam Darnold or what I believe he accomplished this year and how proud I was to be right alongside with him.”
Though Darnold probably exceeded expectations this season, there were some moments down the stretch of the season where he didn’t perform the way the team needed him. The Vikings will be getting J.J. McCarthy back next season, and they could be looking to implement him while saving money on trying to re-sign Darnold.
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