For most of the season, Sam Darnold and the Minnesota Vikings’ offense were in control, winning 14 games in their first year together. The final two games of Darnold’s season weren’t as successful, with the Vikings suffering their two biggest losses of the year.
Yet, Darnold still finished in the top five of passing yards and touchdowns while showing he is fully capable of leading a high-powered offense to the playoffs. His regular season resume is enough for the former No. 3 overall pick to earn several more seasons as the Vikings quarterback, likely at a rate that pays him roughly $30 to $40 million annually.
However, what if the Vikings want to turn to J.J. McCarthy, with the 2024 first-round pick expected to be fully recovered from his knee surgery by the start of the 2025 season? What would Darnold’s trade value be?
Minnesota Vikings trading Sam Darnold; Is it worth it?
Credit: Mark J. Rebilas-Imagn Images
Now that the Minnesota Vikings’ season is over, it’s time to assess what happens with Sam Darnold’s expiring contract. The Vikings have options.
They could re-sign Darnold to a contract extension, buying more time to analyze whether a future with the soon-to-be 28-year-old is more advantageous than throwing J.J. McCarthy to the dogs and seeing what he can handle.
Another option is to let Darnold leave in free agency, which would surely net the Vikings a 2026 compensatory draft pick, likely in the third round, depending on how much Minnesota spends in free agency.
Then, of course the Vikings could also place the franchise tag on Darnold, giving them another year to figure things out. Yet, there’s always a possibility the Vikings tag and trade Darnold. This would net them immediate trade compensation instead of waiting for a compensatory pick to convey in 2026 instead of 2025.
Yet, if the Vikings placed Darnold on the trade block, how much could they expect to receive in return for the Pro Bowl quarterback? The Athletic’s Vikings insider Alec Lewis recently took a crack at assessing Darnold’s trade value and it may be much lower than many anticipate.
“The answer depends on the interest level of quarterback-needy teams. The Raiders, Steelers, Titans, Giants and Browns might be interested. Las Vegas is the most flush with cap space. If the Raiders hire a head coach who could build an intriguing enough infrastructure (say, Ben Johnson, though that ship has sailed), Darnold may be interested. In that situation, the Vikings would have to weigh the value of a late-round pick versus what they could potentially recoup as a compensatory pick.”
Lewis on Sam Darnold’s trade value
A late-round pick is usually classified as something worth anywhere from a fourth to a seventh-round pick. Chances are, the Vikings would get more than a sixth or seventh-round selection for Darnold, who’s coming off a career year.
Would a fourth or fifth-round pick be enough to tempt the Vikings to risk a tag-and-trade scenario instead of simply allowing Darnold to enter free agency and drive his own price up? As noted, the Vikings may prefer to have immediate draft compensation instead of waiting for the compensatory pick formula to factor in next offseason.