Listening to some analysts and football fans talk about the Minnesota Vikings leading up to the 2024 NFL season was interesting. There weren't a lot of believers in Sam Darnold to be a quarterback who could keep the purple and gold competitive.
There are plenty of reasons to doubt the former No. 3 overall draft pick, but his one-year deal with the Vikings essentially locked him in for at least one season in a starter or mentor role for rookie J.J. McCarthy.
Once McCarthy went down with an injury, it has been full-speed ahead for Darnold. With plenty of talent around him and head coach Kevin O'Connell working with him, the Vikings are off to a good start with Sam Darnold at the helm.
Kevin O’Connell gets honest about negative past of Sam Darnold
Sam Darnold may have been a top pick in the 2018 NFL Draft, but the New York Jets didn't exactly put their rookie passer in a situation where he could grow and develop as a passer. A similar situation with the Carolina Panthers added to the disappointment from Darnold's past.
Following the Vikings' Week 2 upset of the San Francisco 49ers, Kevin O'Connell spoke to the media in a video shared on the team's official YouTube video about Darnold's presence with Minnesota and was more interested in talking about his quarterback's future rather than his history.
"I don't really have a lot of interest in talking about the past with Sam Darnold. I think we all need to just start being totally present. And when he plays well like he has, I think we just talk about a guy playing the position at a high level, and we move on and see. The consistency of it is what we're all going to be looking for. And I think Sam's doing the right thing each and every week to prepare. Clearly, his teammates are confident in his physical ability, in his preparation. And let's just keep seeing what it looks like. And I have a lot of confidence in what that will look like."Kevin O'Connell via Minnesota Vikings
Sam Darnold will continue to be a hot topic in the NFL. His play this season is opening some eyes to his potential and his play so far has been good enough to lead the Minnesota Vikings to a 2-0 start to the 2024 NFL season.
Sometimes it is difficult to put the past behind a person, but Darnold is doing a good job of quieting those obsessed with his shortcomings in the past. Minnesota's quarterback has never been in a starting position that sets him up for better success than the Vikings.
It is time to give Sam Darnold an opportunity to move past the ghosts of his pasts. Kevin O'Connell sees the potential that his quarterback brings to the Minnesota Vikings offense, it's easy to understand why the head coach is more interested in looking ahead than looking back.