Going into the 2024 season, there were a lot of people questioning the Minnesota Vikings' process at quarterback. They had moved on from Kirk Cousins and went into the draft with an unknown future. With that in flux for the Vikings, they turned to journeyman quarterback Sam Darnold.
Having been with three teams in his six seasons, the third overall pick in the 2018 NFL Draft, Darnold was widely viewed as a talented player but a bust. He was unable to stay consistent in his first two stops and had to settle for being a backup in San Francisco last season.
Many across the media didn't have a high opinion of the Vikings due mainly to the change at quarterback, but Darnold is changing opinions across the league and his team has faith in him.
Sam Darnold is having a renaissance season
After two games with the Vikings, it's clear that Darnold isn't the same player now that he was in prior seasons. His time with Kyle Shanahan and the 49ers is a major reason why he is having this amount of success. Vikings head coach Kevin O'Connell talked about just that during his press conference on Monday.
“I think Sam being around, the Niners and Kyle [Shanahan] and how he coached that group last year, I think he took a lot out of that,” O’Connell said. ”And then I think just the way he went about the daily, I really stressed to Sam throughout training camp as we installed plays go through a process of how you were digesting that information, what you were doing at night, if we gave him information early, how he was going about trying to be comfortable with that. What types of questions would he ask either in the quarterback meeting or when I get a chance with him one-on-one? And then that clarity that I can give him going into the games when we go through the whole call sheet the day before Saturday mornings, that red pen meeting where I think that’s the time where any and all uncertainty, gray, where he won’t have a maximum amount of confidence."
That last line about the maximum amount of confidence has ben a key part of Darnold's success. Throughout the first two games, it's evident that O'Connell has a lot of faith in what Darnold can do. They are using the full playbook with him like it was Kirk Cousins still back there. That element is very important to their success.
That confidence came to fruition after the Vikings got a goal-line stand. On the second play of the ensuing drive, O'Connell dialed up a deep shot for Justin Jefferson that Darnold connected with and it turned into both a 97-yard touchdown and the fifth-ever 98+ yard drive in team history. Two of those drives have come with Darnold under center. It was obvious to Darnold that O'Connell had plenty of confidence in him and the entire offense to execute the play.
"It was a great call, obviously with them expecting some type of run play or a quick throw to be able to, like you mentioned, you're backed up and you want to sometimes teams play conservative. You know, we did that last week. Backed up, throwing the ball in the flat to Ty, playing it a little bit more conservative. For KO to be able to call that play and the guys whatever in the booth or the offensive staff to be able to see that and call it, it shows, you know, just the trust that they have in me.
"We have put in the time to be able to have the confidence, not only me and the coaching staff but everyone in our organization has trust and confidence in everybody. We have been building it since April, and, you know, we're just -- we're excited to be able to watch the tape and move onto next week."
That play was the main reason why the Vikings ended up winning the game. It put the Vikings up for good and they didn't look back.
"The 97-yarder was one of the prettiest throws I've seen. It actually goes back to a look we ran on them last year. Similar presentation, similar everything. That one has been in the hopper for a little bit. Did not know I would call it, backed up with our feet in the paint like that. Great protection in that moment. Elite execution by both Speedy -- I think Speedy would have been a long hit as well, depending on who Sam chose, and he chose the right one launching that thing as pretty of a throw as I've seen, especially in those circumstances. And then Speedy's play-style finish to go get the block to get Justin in the end zone. So many examples of awesome stuff by our guys, and the other throw, I'm glad you asked about that. That's a throw that a quarterback makes and if he doesn't make that one, don't know where that ball is going, we were kinda letting Speedy take the middle on that thing. He's got to read coverage, and it presents itself, and Sam put it in the only place you could. That is big-time quarterback play for all those folks out there that want examples of it. I think we got two weeks of some pretty tangible examples of some quarterback play from Sam Darnold. I'm really proud of him."
O'Connell got emotional when talking about Darnold and it's completely understandable. He's a likable guy who is pouring his heart and soul into being great for the Vikings this season. It wasn't all sunshine and rainbows for Darnold who did throw an interception at the end of the first half. O'Connell talked about what he saw from Darnold on the play.
"I thought it was a big example of Sam, just one play at a time. You know he tried to force it over the best linebacker in football who can sometimes look like he's seven feet tall out there. Might have had Jets (Jefferson) on the backside but it will be a great learning example of just quarterback play. There is nothing wrong with forcing yourself to say no sometimes on a look where it wasn't the intended look, and maybe we gotta progress and put the ball in play. When you are an All-Pro you're going to be making plays all over the field, and he certainly did that to help keep them in the game when we had a chance to stretch that lead a little bit more."
You could also see the confidence that O'Connell had in Darnold on that final drive. He led the Vikings on a 14-play, 66-yard drive that took up 6:36 of game time. He trusted Darnold to throw the ball without Jefferson, Jordan Addison and T.J. Hockenson in the game. Darnold also made the most impressive throw of his season thus far with a 27-yard seam route to Jalen Nailor with three defenders around.
Through two games, Darnold has completed 36-of-50 passes for 476 yards, four touchdowns and two interceptions. Those numbers have reflected a quality performance over those two games and O'Connell's confidence has been steadfast in Darnold the entire time.
Right now, Darnold is looking to have a Geno Smith-type renaissance season and the confidence that O'Connell has in him will help that grow expon
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