Darnold NFL MVP Candidate Through 5 Starts for Minnesota
The Minnesota Vikings have an MVP candidate in Sam Darnold, but NFL insider Mike Florio of Pro Football Talk is already contemplating whether the team should explore a trade for a new quarterback.
Florio made his case as part of an article published on Saturday, October 12, in which he explored Matthew Stafford as perhaps the top QB who will be available ahead of the league’s November 5 trade deadline, as the Los Angeles Rams (1-4) battle a host of injuries.
“If, for example, the [New York] Jets provided a blueprint for making Sam Darnold look mortal, the Vikings would be wise (if they lose to the [Detroit] Lions and then to Stafford’s Rams) to at least entertain the possibility of an upgrade,” Florio wrote. “Coincidentally, Vikings coach Kevin O’Connell and Stafford worked together for a year in L.A. And they both won a Super Bowl ring for their efforts.”
Los Angeles Rams quarterback Matthew Stafford.
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Stafford has thrown for more than 57,000 yards in his career, along with 360 TDs and 183 INTs. At 36 years old, Stafford is playing in the second season of a four-year, $160 million contract.
Darnold, meanwhile, appears in the midst of a career renaissance. He has thrown for 1,111 yards, 11 TDs and 4 INTs through five games, leading Minnesota to a 5-0 start in the process — easily one of the most surprising stretches for any team in the NFL over the last number of years.
Darnold’s 11 TDs were leading the league through Week 4, though the Jets held him to 14-of-31 passing for 179 yards and 1 INT during the teams’ Week 5 matchup in London. Still, Darnold remains among the favorites to win the MVP as Week 6 approaches.
The Vikings are on a bye this weekend, which will allow running back Aaron Jones (hip) and tight end T.J. Hockenson (knee) extra time to rehabilitate their injuries before Minnesota hosts the Lions on October 20.
Minnesota Vikings quarterback Sam Darnold talks with head coach Kevin O’Connell.
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The only scenario in which it makes for the Vikings to take on Stafford’s salary is if the team doesn’t plan on paying Darnold next offseason. He inked a one-year deal worth $10 million and is poised to sign a multiyear deal for much more than that annually come spring 2025, assuming he can keep playing anywhere near the level at which he is performing now.
Even then, however, Minnesota has quarterback J.J. McCarthy waiting in the wings on an affordable rookie deal. As such, the team would need to decide that Stafford is so much better than Darnold that he’s worth tossing out the value they have this year on Darnold’s contract, and that Stafford is worth keeping as the starter through at least 2025 as the currently injured McCarthy learns behind him during his second pro season.
Those are two pretty big, not to mention expensive, leaps for the undefeated Vikings to take at some point over the next month.