Darnold completed 25 of 40 passes for 245 yards with a touchdown and an interception in the Vikings' 27-9 wild-card loss to the Rams on Monday night. He also rushed four times for 19 yards and lost a fumble. While his final stat line looks serviceable enough, it belies the uneven nature of Darnold's season-ending performance and the amount of duress he frequently found himself under from a Rams defense that collected a whopping nine sacks against him for a net loss of 82 yards. Darnold couldn't facilitate anything more than a 64-yard effort -- that total belonging to T.J. Hockenson -- for his pass catchers, and although he targeted the duo of Justin Jefferson and Jordan Addison a combined 16 times, that only yielded a modest 8-87 line. Darnold's fumble, which came with just over four and a half minutes remaining in the first half, also had disastrous consequences, as it was scooped up and returned 57 yards for a touchdown by Jared Verse to extend Los Angeles' lead to two scores at the time. Darnold rightfully received plenty of credit for the Vikings' standout regular season by putting together a career-best 2024 campaign in which he completed 361 of 545 passes for 4,319 yards with a 35:12 TD:INT and added a 67-212-1 rushing line, all across 17 games. However, he looked like a different quarterback in back-to-back lopsided losses to the Lions and Rams to close out Minnesota's season, and with unrestricted free agency looming for him at the start of the new league year, the topic of Darnold's future will be one of great intrigue considering the presence of J.J. McCarthy (knee) on Minnesota's roster.
Darnold completed just 18 of 41 pass attempts for 166 yards with no touchdowns or turnovers while rushing for 10 yards on three carries in Sunday's 31-9 loss to Detroit. Darnold picked the worst time to revert to his New York Jets form in Sunday's battle between juggernauts for both the NFC North crown and the No. 1 seed in the conference. His offensive line did him no favors while star wideout Justin Jefferson committed multiple drops, so the quarterback's horrid stat line can't be entirely placed on his shoulders. It is worth noting that Darnold had his ankle rolled up on by a teammate late in the contest, but he did not miss any game action after getting up gingerly. Minnesota's signal-caller will have to rally quickly to get his offense back to previous levels as the No. 5 seed Vikings prepare to visit the Rams in the wild-card round of the playoffs next Monday.
Darnold completed 33 of 43 passes for 377 yards, three touchdowns and one interception in Sunday's 27-25 win over the Packers. The Vikings' offense failed to record points on its first two drives, but Darnold then proceeded to lead the team on four scoring drives across their next five possessions. He had a number of impressive throws, highlighted by 31 and 18-yard touchdown strikes to Jalen Nailor and Jordan Addison, respectively. Darnold recorded five completions of at least 20 yards while racking up his highest yardage total of the season, and he now has at least three touchdowns in three of his last four games.
Darnold completed 22 of 35 pass attempts for 246 yards and three touchdowns while rushing five times for 11 yards in Sunday's 27-24 win over the Seahawks. Darnold lifted his team past Seattle late in the fourth quarter when he stepped up in the face of heavy pressure before rifling a bomb to Justin Jefferson for the game-deciding score. The late-blooming Darnold had already tossed two scores in the first half of Sunday's win, resulting in the signal-caller's sixth game recording three or more total touchdowns this season. The 2018 first-round selection is now up to 3,776 passing yards and 32 touchdowns (with 11 interceptions) through 15 starts with Minnesota. Darnold remains an appealing fantasy asset heading into next Sunday's home tilt against the Packers.
Darnold completed 24 of 40 passes for 231 yards with a touchdown and an interception in the Vikings' 30-12 win over the Bears on Monday night. The Vikings had the luxury of running a balanced attack against the hapless Bears, so Darnold didn't have to do anywhere near as much as he had against the Falcons in Week 14. However, the veteran quarterback still put together a solid effort that saw him connect with seven different targets overall, including starting wideouts Justin Jefferson and Jordan Addison seven times apiece. Darnold's one scoring toss went to Jefferson as well from seven yards out with just over five minutes remaining in the first quarter, extending his streak with at least one touchdown pass to five games. Darnold now will turn his sights to what could be a tough Week 16 road date with the Seahawks on a short week.
Darnold completed 22 of 28 passes for 347 yards with five touchdowns and no interceptions and added four rushes for seven yards in the Vikings' 42-21 win over the Falcons on Sunday. Darnold and the Vikings punted after seven plays on their first drive, but the offensive showcase began on Minnesota's second possession in the form of a 49-yard touchdown pass to Jordan Addison. Darnold encountered little resistance the rest of the way while accumulating single-game career highs in passing yards and touchdowns, hitting Justin Jefferson (12 yards, 52 yards) and Addison (11 yards, six yards) for his other four scoring tosses. Darnold now has multiple touchdown-pass tallies without an interception in four straight games, as well as a pair of 300-yard efforts in the last three contests. The veteran quarterback's resurgent season's next chapter unfolds at home against the Bears in a Week 15 Monday night matchup Dec. 16.
Darnold completed 21 of 31 passes for 235 yards and two touchdowns in Sunday's 23-22 win over the Cardinals. He added 22 rushing yards on four carries. The Vikings were in a 19-6 hole late in the third quarter as Darnold struggled to find time in the pocket, but the QB led an impressive late comeback, hitting Johnny Mundt for a four-yard score just before the end of the third and then connecting with Aaron Jones on a five-yard TD with only 1:13 left in the fourth. It's the fifth time in the last six games that Darnold has tossed multiple TDs, a stretch in which he's posted an 11:5 TD:INT. He'll look to keep rolling, and keep the Vikings on track for the playoffs, in Week 14 against the Falcons.
Darnold completed 22 of 34 passes for 330 yards wtih two touchdowns and zero interceptions in Sunday's 30-27 overtime win against the Bears. Darnold crushed the Bears with deep pass attempts, as he tallied three completions of at least 40 yards and seven of at least 20. That led to his first 300-yard passing game of the season, though he was aided by overtime to get there. Darnold also tacked on passing scores from two and five yards away, marking his fourth multi-touchdown effort in six games since Minnesota's bye. After a brief shaky stretch, Darnold has returned to form as a solid fantasy contributor.
Darnold (foot) was a full practice participant Thursday. After beginning Week 12 prep as limited due to a foot injury Wednesday, Darnold was able to handle all on-field work one day later, setting him up to continue leading the Vikings offense Sunday in Chicago. Since Minnesota's Week 6 bye, he's completed 112 of 156 passes (71.8 percent) for 1,276 yards, eight touchdowns and six interceptions, rushed 26 times for 105 yards and another TD and fumbled twice (both lost).