Indianapolis Colts quarterback Daniel Jones needed a hard reset on his career after flaming out with the New York Giants after nearly six years of being the starter there. After getting his release from the Giants, the Minnesota Vikings gave him a spot as Sam Darnold's backup for the end of the season.
Jones spoke about his short time in Minnesota on the Pat McAfee Show on Tuesday. He shared what he learned from being with the Vikings and working with head coach Kevin O'Connell and his staff.
"Yeah I think just being around Kevin (O'Connell), being around Josh McCown, Grant Udinski
there. I learned a lot from them. The biggest thing I took away from there was the preparation and how detailed they were in the game plan, how much they prepare for certain looks, checks they had, motions to undress the defense. I mean every little thing they were going over they were walking through. It was very, very detailed, high level 'Here's what we're expecting. Here's what we're going to do to it' and the preparation, day-to-day throughout the week was really impressive to me."
“The biggest thing I took away from there was the preparation and how detailed they were in the game plan.”
— VikingzFanPage (@vikingzfanpage) September 10, 2025
- Former #Vikings QB Daniel Jones on his time in Minnesotapic.twitter.com/BpFPkYbTtZ
Daniel Jones' time with the Minnesota Vikings proved to have paid off after his stellar performance against the Miami Dolphins
Jones made his first start since leaving the Giants for the Colts as they took on the Dolphins. He finished completing 75.9% of his passes for 272 yards and one touchdown while adding 26 yards and two more scores on the ground. The Colts blew out the Dolphins 33-8.
It's not the first time O'Connell and his staff have worked wonders on a quarterback. Seattle Seahawks quarterback Sam Darnold experienced a career revival after throwing for 4,319 yards and 35 touchdowns with the Vikings last year, and led the franchise to the postseason. Darnold was a Pro Bowler for the first time in his career.
Vikings fans are seeing the same success in place with the current starting quarterback, J.J. McCarthy. The young second-year quarterback impressed in his first career start on Monday in the win against the Chicago Bears, with three total touchdowns, and was named NFC Offensive Player of the Week for Week 1.
For those who want to keep doubting O'Connell that he can't get McCarthy to play at a high level, Jones and Darnold are perfect examples of trusting the process.