Kiba, who is one of three elephants in the African Elephant Savannah, an exhibit at Nashville Zoo cools off on a hot day on June 24, 2005. © Ricky Rogers / The Tennessean part of USA TODAY NETWORK / USA TODAY NETWORK.
The Minnesota Vikings have a 5-2 record through eight weeks, live in third place inside the NFC North, and have a clear path to the postseason if the winning ways continue.
However, according to SI.com, the club evidently has an elephant in the room — and that’s the quarterback plan for 2025 and beyond.
To most onlookers, the solution is straightforward. Minnesota will hand the QB1 scepter to quarterback J.J. McCarthy next season, a man the organization drafted with the 10th overall pick six months ago. Yet, with current QB1 Sam Darnold playing quite well, he may factor into 2025 plans, too.
“For the most part, Darnold played pretty well in his Southern California homecoming before the Rams’ defensive front took over late after the Darrisaw injury,” SI.com’s Albert Breer wrote this week.
“And he’s been consistent, and proven to be a good fit for the Vikings’ offense. As for what that means going forward, Kevin O’Connell has addressed the elephant in the room, and told Darnold to worry about having a good day, a good practice, a good game.”
Darnold ranks ninth in the business per EPA+CPOE among all qualifying quarterbacks, an efficiency metric measuring expected wins added. For perspective, former Vikings quarterback Kirk Cousins ranked 17th per the same metric during his final full campaign in Minnesota (2022). Darnold also ranks fifth in the NFL with 14 touchdown passes. Scaled to a 17-game season, this is Darnold’s projected pace:
Breer added, “After that, they’d all address what would be a very good problem down the line.”
The “good” problem is two promising signal-callers. Forcing a choice between McCarthy and Darnold is better than having zero quarterbacks on deck for the future. The Las Vegas Raiders can probably attest.
The Vikings found McCarthy in April, nominating the Michigan alumnus as the quarterback of the future after Kirk Cousins skedaddled to the Atlanta Falcons in March. McCarthy looked the part in every way, shape, and form in May, June, July, and August — and then tore his meniscus during the first preseason game.
That paved the way for Darnold to take over QB1, at least for 2024.
Breer mentioned McCarthy, as well: “McCarthy’s done a lot of rehab while his teammates are on the practice field, has participated in meetings and has a one-on-one meeting once a week with O’Connell.”
This one shouldn’t be difficult to decipher. The Vikings drafted McCarthy for the future. Darnold was merely the patchover quarterback. Unless Minnesota reaches or wins a Super Bowl — that doesn’t feel too likely entering Week 9 — the job is McCarthy’s in 2025.
Telling Darnold after the season, “Thanks — but we’ve already got our guy, and we told you that last spring,” shouldn’t be that complicated.
Dustin Baker is a political scientist who graduated from the University of Minnesota in 2007. Subscribe to his daily YouTube Channel, VikesNow. The show features guests, analysis, and opinion on all things related to the purple team, with 4-7 episodes per week. His Vikings obsession dates back to 1996. Listed guilty pleasures: Peanut Butter Ice Cream, ‘The Sopranos,’ Basset Hounds, and The Doors (the band). He follows the NBA as closely as the NFL.
All statistics provided by Pro Football Reference / Stathead; all contractual information provided by OverTheCap.com.