Sam Darnold’s journey to Minnesota wasn’t exactly scripted in the stars, but the NFL has a funny way of rewriting careers. Once a top draft pick, he was burdened with expectations in New York and had stopgap runs in Carolina and San Francisco. But when the Vikings brought him in it posed a question. Is this the former star USC star’s time to fulfill his potential or was it just a bridge until the next franchise quarterback arrived and Darnold was left to wander? This very question will likely be answered this offseason.

Having signed a one-year deal last year in March, Darnold did his part, for most of the season anyway. He helped the Vikings to their best regular-season record in 16 years, before he put up uninspiring performances in the last two games of the season, to cast doubt over his future. But he is not the only QB whose future will have to be decided by Kevin O’Connell and the Vikings front office. Daniel Jones, who was released by the Giants, was added by the Vikings to their practice squad in November and there has been reported “mutual interest” in a 2025 return.

On Thursday, the head coach, O’Connell appeared on the latest episode of The Dan Patrick Show. Patrick asked him the most anticipated question about Darnold’s future with the franchise. “When do you make your decision or the team makes its decision on Sam Darnold?” Patrick questioned. In his response, the HC revealed that we need to wait a bit more to learn about his future with the team.

 “You know, it’s an ongoing process right now Dan. We’re very proud of what Sam was able to accomplish…The idea is this we’re you know, we’re evaluating how we’re going to move forward and put the best possible team together in 2025 and Beyond.”

JJ McCarthy, the Vikings’ 10th overall Draft pick had to wrap up his rookie season without even making his pro football debut due to his knee injury. Later, Darnold took advantage of the opportunity and has really put himself as probably the premier player at the position before, well, going into free agency.

Darnold has established himself as a contender to start if the Vikings decide to keep him for the next season. Darnold had a passer rating of 102.5 with 4,319 yards, 35 touchdowns, and 12 interceptions in 17 games in 2024. He was selected to play in his first Pro Bowl. This suggests he may not be too keen on taking the backseat to McCarthy, in case the Vikings decide to give the rookie a run at the QB1 spot.

The Vikings also have his annual valuation to consider. They could place the franchise tag on Darnold, which would be roughly $41.4 million, according to Over The Cap. This will take a could chunk of the Vikings’ cap space for 2025. Hence, they might look to move him on as they did with Kirk Cousins.

And for Daniel Jones? He was only in the second year of a four-year, $160 million deal when the Giants released him. He had thrown for 2,070 yards, eight touchdowns, and seven interceptions while completing 63.3% of his passes in his 10 starts for New York this season.

“On Daniel Jones, yes, there is mutual interest, that continued, that Daniel Jones is with the Vikings next year,” said KSTP’s Darren Wolfson on Jones’ situation.

It is safe to say that Kevin O’Connell is shuffling his deck to pick the right QB for the next season and he’s having a talk with all three of them.

“I think a lot goes into it. We haven’t made that decision yet. I talked to really all three you know, JJ’s here everyday. But I talked to Sam yesterday for a long time. I talked to Daniel Jones for a long time. I just want those guys to know that there’s an element in this where our relationship matters, the communication between me and those guys has to be paramount and the agents and our front office those conversations will go on,” he said.

Now, the thing is, McCarthy is gonna return for his sophomore season after injury and he’s looking for a fair opportunity. If Darnold and Jones both end up extending their stay in Minnesota, O’Connell will have to answer another big question—who’s taking the QB1 spot once JJ McCarthy is back in the mix?

After all, JJ McCarthy is yet to make his debut

McCarthy’s rookie season in a nutshell? It ended before it even began. After the preseason opener against the Raiders, McCarthy reported that he was feeling soreness. Later it was revealed that the 10th overall pick had fully torn his right knee’s meniscus and had to go through surgery. The result? He became the first QB ever selected in the first round to miss out the entire season without playing a single game.

Fast forward to now and the dark clouds are looming over his head due to injury uncertainly for his second season. However, the 22-year-old just wants an opportunity to show his true potential. On Tuesday, McCarthy appeared on The Rich Eisen Show where he said, “All I can ask for is a fair opportunity. That’s the one that I feel like everybody’s given and it’s fundamental.”

“When money gets involved, things get complicated, and reps get skewed and there’s different things that come into the whole ‘political’ world that everyone talks about. But I really just have to focus on controlling what I can control. My feelings don’t matter.”

He’s just looking for one Sam Darnold type of opportunity to prove his worth on the gridiron.