Sam Darnold's one-year deal with the Minnesota Vikings ended after the 2024 NFL season. The 27-year-old quarterback is set to become a free agent this offseason and is free to sign wherever he pleases.
The Vikings have some options when it comes to Darnold. They could allow him to sign with another team, re-sign him for the 2025 season, or use a tag to retain his rights and keep their options open this offseason.
Minnesota has J.J. McCarthy waiting for an opportunity to become the starting quarterback and the team could decide to go forward with him in that role. If they do start him, they would be able to move on from Darnold and allow him to play for a quarterback-needy team.
Latest report on Sam Darnold is full of disappointment for the Minnesota Vikings
Using the franchise tag on Sam Darnold would cost the Minnesota Vikings a lot of money. However, if they have his rights, they would also be eligible for compensation if they execute a trade to move Sam Darnold this offseason.
On Sunday, ESPN's Jeremy Fowler published an article with a round-up of information from around the league. Among the topics discussed in the article, Minnesota's situation with Sam Darnold and the franchise tag was included.
Fowler shared that the Vikings are not expected to use the franchise tag on Sam Darnold, allowing him to become a free agent. This means that Minnesota will miss out on any potential draft picks the team could have earned in a sign-and-trade situation.
Minnesota could strongly benefit from acquiring a few more picks in the 2025 NFL Draft. The team currently owns the rights to three picks in the upcoming draft: a first-round selection and two fifth-round picks.
While they are expected to earn a compensatory pick this year, the Vikings have holes on their roster they need to fill and could use a wider net to hopefully bring talented players to the team who eventually become contributors.
Darnold should be considered the top quarterback in free agency. His career year with Minnesota last season combined with his youth makes him an easy target for any NFL franchise looking for a possible quarterback of the future.
With the large amount of salary cap space the Minnesota Vikings have this offseason and the lack of draft capital, it's interesting the team isn't expected to try to tag Sam Darnold and flip him to acquire a few more picks.