Minnesota Vikings quarterback Sam Darnold is playing himself into a seat at the table for a future contract in Minnesota.
Former Vikings offensive lineman Jeremiah Sirles, who is now an NFL agent, argued that Darnold, who has a 6-2 record entering Week 10, has asserted himself ahead of 2025 free agency.
“I think it’s definitely at the table for a conversation and there’s still a lot of factors that need to be played out,” Sirles said on the “Purple Insider” podcast, adding that J.J. McCarthy‘s health could play a factor in Darnold’s future in Minnesota.
“I think one thing you got to monitor very closely is how well is J.J. recovering. Is he on track? Is there any setbacks? Is there any realm of possibility that this is going to be a long-term effect thing that we can’t let Sam Darnold walk out the building,” Sirles said.
Sirles added that it’s unlikely there would be long-term health concerns for McCarthy, coming off meniscus surgery in August, but if he is not fully prepared to take the starting reins, Darnold could have a case to stay.
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GettyKwesi Adofo-Mensah (R) and Kevin O’Connell of the Minnesota Vikings.
While Darnold is a top-15 quarterback this season, Sirles urged the Vikings to not lose sight of their plans that revolve around McCarthy.
“I’ve said it since the beginning: if Sam Darnold doesn’t take us to an NFC Championship or a Super Bowl, you have to let him walk,” Sirles said.
“What [coach Kevin O’Connell] and what [general manager Kwesi Adofo-Mensah] has done is they’re starting to build their plan around a rookie-scale quarterback and the last thing you want to do is, based off of one year of Sam Darnold coming in and doing great things, is derail the five-year plan, derail the future of the plan that was put in place when you drafted J.J. McCarthy,” Sirles added.
Sirles took nothing away from Darnold’s success this season. However, the Vikings’ dramatic improvement this season is a result of shedding Kirk Cousins‘ contract and using those cap savings to sign impact players on defense.
Minnesota has more upside to do that next offseason with McCarthy, whose rookie deal’s $5.4 million average annual value offers a significant edge over the average veteran quarterback contract.
Darnold is playing himself into a contract worth $30 million a year, which would leave less cap space for the Vikings to sign talent to make a run in 2025.
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GettyJ.J. McCarthy #9 of the Minnesota Vikings during the 2024 preseason.
Last offseason was pivotal for the Vikings building a future after the new regime tried a two-year retread with Cousins before parting ways with the veteran quarterback in March.
McCarthy’s contract is the timeline for the organization to build a talented roster around him with the cap benefits of his rookie contract.
Even in a year where the Vikings are eating $68 million in dead cap, primarily from having to pay the remainder of Danielle Hunter and Cousins’ contracts, the team has seen dramatic improvements from free agency.
The Vikings fortified their defense by signing Jonathan Greenard, Andrew Van Ginkel and Blake Cashman to multi-year deals. Those moves have paid dividends with the defense playing like a top-five unit in the league.
They extended Justin Jefferson and Christian Darrisaw to long-term deals as well.
The stars are paid, and next offseason the spending spree will continue.
The Vikings have $75 million in cap space to spend in 2025, which should include fortifying already improved position groups that will be a boon to the team making meaningful runs for the next handful of seasons.
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Vikings’ QB Future in Question After Sam Darnold Development