Sam Darnold Has a Warning for Everyone
Don’t give up on quarterbacks after a handful of games, and for damn sure don’t rely on social media and TikTokers as your source for quarterback intel — that’s Sam Darnold’s message to the masses last week.
Darnold spoke on a podcast about football teams and coaching staffs leaving young passers for dead too prematurely, which is what happened to him once upon a time.
Darnold’s Patience Argument Now Has a Vikings Angle
Darnold: Use Patience at QB
Darnold spoke to former NFLer Chris Long on the Green Light podcast, and he wasn’t shy about unloading his takes on quarterback development.
“You get quarterbacks that get drafted really high, and sometimes, I think people are really, really fast to give up on them, especially in this social media kind of culture. I think it’s just kind of the way things are, and I’m not saying that’s a bad thing. It’s just kind of the way it is,” Darnold told Long.
“We live in a time where TikTok is kind of king and YouTube short clips, these 20-minute clips of guys sitting on ‘Get Up’ or ‘First Take’ or whatever it is, and they have an opinion about a young quarterback, and it just goes viral.”
Darnold is living proof of his own warning. He smashed the narrative in February by helping the Seattle Seahawks win their second Super Bowl.
“Sometimes that gets back to a young kid or that young quarterback that could affect them later down the line. This is what it is, man, like people are just gonna tell you ‘you suck,’ and that’s going to be the narrative,” he added.
Well, the Vikings Have an Example Right Now
Vikings fans listened to snippets of Darnold’s interview with Long and collectively said, “Hey, is he talking about J.J. McCarthy?”
Minnesota drafted McCarthy in 2024 — with Darnold on the Vikings’ roster — and his career has not fully launched so far. He tore his meniscus in August 2024, paving the way for Darnold’s reclamation story, and only took over the QB1 job in 2025. During that assignment, McCarthy suffered three more injuries, including a high ankle sprain, a concussion, and a broken hand, stifling his development, which was already rocky in the first place. When McCarthy was on the field, he delivered up-and-down moments, not unlike Darnold in 2018 and 2019.
Therefore, if Darnold is correct with his theory on Long’s show, the Vikings have a test in living color: Will they retain McCarthy and cultivate him — or ship him somewhere, as the New York Jets did to Darnold with his next chapter in Carolina?
Sportsnaut’s Andrew Buller-Russ noted this week, “Kyler Murray and J.J. McCarthy are spending hours together behind the scenes. It’s possible the tension has only since heightened, or maybe the two competitors are leaving it all out on the field instead.”
“Of course, there’s always the possibility that McCarthy, or even Murray, requests a trade when the other doesn’t get their way.”
The Baker Mayfield Example
Mayfield is another example. After starting his career adeptly in Cleveland, he encountered a shaky campaign in 2021, prompting the Browns to swing an unholy trade and contract for Deshaun Watson in 2022 and toss Mayfield aside. He bounced around and even played with Darnold in Carolina.
Fast forward to 2023, and Mayfield, like Darnold, totally resurrected his career, signing with the Tampa Bay Buccaneers, where he’s just an established Top 15 quarterback now.
Here is a statistical illustration of his Darnold-like reclamation, though he doesn’t have a Super Bowl ring yet like his former teammate:
Baker Mayfield
EPA+CPOE Ranking,
Since 2018:
2018-2022: 27th in NFL (of 32)
2023-2025: 14th in NFL (of 32)
Mayfield went from possible bust to franchise quarterback after Cleveland gave up too quickly and Tampa Bay rolled the dice. That’s Darnold’s warning in a nutshell.
Other Upcoming Culprits
So, besides himself — as a living, breathing example — who’s Darnold referring to with his comments? These men are eligible or may be eligible for reclamation soon:
- Mac Jones (49ers)
- Trey Lance (Chargers)
- Will Levis (Titans)
- J.J. McCarthy (Vikings)
- Michael Penix Jr. (Falcons)
- Spencer Rattler (Saints)
- Anthony Richardson (Colts)
- Shedeur Sanders (Browns)
- Tua Tagovailoa (Dolphins)
- Malik Willis (Dolphins)
Of course, not all those men will follow Darnold’s path; it’s not easy. However, per his recommendation, each man should get a chance at redemption, and NFL fans should stop soundbiting young quarterbacks with “this guy sucks” as a career verdict. Progress isn’t always linear, nor does every team have the best foundation for a player to succeed out of the gate.
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