Sam Darnold’s shaky finish shouldn’t ruin his impressive season or impact his future. Several NFL teams need a franchise quarterback and Darnold proved he can be that guy in Minnesota, becoming the first quarterback to record 14 wins in his first season with a team.

What a difference a couple of weeks make. The Minnesota Vikings went from a Super Bowl contending, 14-game winner playing for the NFC North title with the conference's No. 1 seed and a wild-card bye on the line -- before Week 18's 31-9 defeat by the Detroit Lions -- to an early playoff exit because of a 27-9 loss to the Los Angeles Rams .

Sam Darnold was previously expected to receive a new contract worth more than Baker Mayfield's $100 million, three-year deal in Tampa Bay - but that now seems unlikely

This ESPN football analyst defends Sam Darnold after Vikings lost to Rams in wild-card game.

The Minnesota Vikings have many difficult questions to answer this offseason before they prepare for the 2025 season. One that no one wants to think about is, "Will Sam Darnold be back in Minnesota for 2025?

Sam Darnold didn't finish the 2024-25 NFL season the way he or the Minnesota Vikings would have liked. It doesn't sound like he did much damage—if any—to

Quarterback Sam Darnold’s disappointing finish to this Vikings season does not close the door on him returning to the team in 2025. General Manager Kwesi Adofo-Mensah told reporters during Thursday’s season-ending news conference that Darnold is among the “good options” the Vikings have at quarterback moving forward.

Despite leading the Minnesota Vikings to a 14-win season for the first time since the turn of the century, quarterback Sam Darnold is set to become an unrestricted free agent this offseason. And it's long been believed he doesn't fit into the team's long-term plans.