All Things 2024-25 Vikings Regular Season Thread

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GophersInIowa said:
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PD put out some nfl stats today regarding Darnold:

Passer rating: 5th
QBR: 13th
Expected pts added: 7th
Yds/att: 4th
PFF grade: 6th
Adj comp %: 5th
Big time throw %: 4th

Darnold may be the best QB in the NFC. Goff would beg to differ I suppose. After Sunday, kind of hard for Love to stake a claim. Hurts maybe? Stafford? Mayfield has put up good numbers. Daniels has burst on the scene.

Naysayers could counter that Darnold has built in advantages of top notch receivers and a top notch system. I would counter by saying Darnold has disadvantages of an average at best oline and less than average running game.

As well, I think an underrated aspect is the connection Darnold has with his teammates. He is definitely #1 in that category. See the ride he took postgame in the locker room Sunday. Never seen that before.
 
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Interesting Phil Mackey says after the season he would send a memo to all other 31 teams. He would say that he wants a #1 pick for either Darnold or McCarthy.

If a team agrees and chooses McCarthy, he would then commit to a long term contract with Darnold and spread out the cap hits so that the biggest hits are down the road. On the other hand, if a team chooses Darnold, he would be in a position to take advantage of 4 yrs rookie scale contract. Either way Vikes would also have an extra first rounder in this year's draft.

Not saying I necessarily agree with this take, but it is interesting.
 
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golf said:
Interesting Phil Mackey says after the season he would send a memo to all other 31 teams. He would say that he wants a #1 pick for either Darnold or McCarthy.

If a team agrees and chooses McCarthy, he would then commit to a long term contract with Darnold and spread out the cap hits so that the biggest hits are down the road. On the other hand, if a team chooses Darnold, he would be in a position to take advantage of 4 yrs rookie scale contract. Either way Vikes would also have an extra first rounder in this year's draft.

Not saying I necessarily agree with this take, but it is interesting.
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Like you, not saying they SHOULD go this route, but just think of the prospect of signing Darnold and parlaying JJ McCarthy into a franchise CB like Will Johnson, or an impact DL like Mason Graham, or another EDGE like Abdul Carter or Mykel Williams?

Scary thought really
 

Ogee Ogilthorpe said:
Like you, not saying they SHOULD go this route, but just think of the prospect of signing Darnold and parlaying JJ McCarthy into a franchise CB like Will Johnson, or an impact DL like Mason Graham, or another EDGE like Abdul Carter or Mykel Williams?

Scary thought really
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It’s really scary when Darnold regresses to the mean, we’ve overpaid for him, and then we have no QB for the future.

Thankfully I don’t think KAM and KOC are dumb enough to do this.
 


Ogee Ogilthorpe said:
Like you, not saying they SHOULD go this route, but just think of the prospect of signing Darnold and parlaying JJ McCarthy into a franchise CB like Will Johnson, or an impact DL like Mason Graham, or another EDGE like Abdul Carter or Mykel Williams?

Scary thought really
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Yep, another first rounder is a big deal.

It is a fascinating thought problem. Which QB would another team prefer to trade for.
 

GopherWeatherGuy said:
It’s really scary when Darnold regresses to the mean, we’ve overpaid for him, and then we have no QB for the future.

Thankfully I don’t think KAM and KOC are dumb enough to do this.
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I still have "doubts" about Darnold even now at 14-2. However, we've yet to see anything close to regression all year and he's still very much in his prime at only 27 years of age.

All that said, maybe going with JJM and using the cap space elsewhere still ends up being the right decision, especially if we get a high draft pick for Darnold. If that happens, it should tell all of us that KOC is in love with the potential of JJM.

Crazy, 2-sided debate material for sure.
 

Slim Tubby said:
I still have "doubts" about Darnold even now at 14-2. However, we've yet to see anything close to regression all year and he's still very much in his prime at only 27 years of age.

All that said, maybe going with JJM and using the cap space elsewhere still ends up being the right decision, especially if we get a high draft pick for Darnold. If that happens, it should tell all of us that KOC is in love with the potential of JJM.

Crazy, 2-sided debate material for sure.
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Yes, the only thing that matters is what KOC really thinks of McCarthy. And no one knows the answer to this.

As has been said, having a top QB on a rookie scale contract is the ultimate NFL cheat code.
 

Slim Tubby said:
I still have "doubts" about Darnold even now at 14-2. However, we've yet to see anything close to regression all year and he's still very much in his prime at only 27 years of age.

All that said, maybe going with JJM and using the cap space elsewhere still ends up being the right decision, especially if we get a high draft pick for Darnold. If that happens, it should tell all of us that KOC is in love with the potential of JJM.

Crazy, 2-sided debate material for sure.
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Darnold did struggle in the middle of the season, but he has been very good most of the year.

Pretty much everything has gone the Vikings way this season, yet they've played in a lot of close games. What if Darnold is just a little more off in some of these games? They could easily have 4 or 5 more losses, then this really isn't a discussion.

Darnold is obviously more talented and has a better arm than Keenum, but I still think this team is a lot like the 2017 team. The margin of error is razor thin, and maybe they won't be so lucky next season. Plus it's rare to be this healthy this late in the year.

I think this team can make a run to the Super Bowl with Darnold the way this season is unfolding, but it would be a huge mistake to keep him long term when you drafted a rookie in a QB class that looks like it could be one of the best in a very long time. 1 season is not a trend.
 



Everyone has said it all pretty much.

We've been pretty much healthy is the other thing (this has been said too), while Detroit (defense) has been massacred by injury and GB has had some hurt players too. Darrisaw the biggest loss but were able to replace him with a decent free agent who was the right situation at the right time (again, incredible luck this year).

We're all wondering about next year and the future .... but damn, maybe this year really is the year of destiny?
 

GopherWeatherGuy said:
It’s really scary when Darnold regresses to the mean, we’ve overpaid for him, and then we have no QB for the future.

Thankfully I don’t think KAM and KOC are dumb enough to do this.
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So, to simplify what you're saying, you are infinitely more confident that an unproven highly drafted soon-to-be 22-year old rookie WILL play at as high or a higher level than Darnold has this year, than you are that Darnold can even merely keep pace with what he's doing right now. You are THAT convinced that this is as good as it will ever get with Darnold and it's only going to go downhill from here.
 

GopherGrit said:
Everyone has said it all pretty much.

We've been pretty much healthy is the other thing (this has been said too), while Detroit (defense) has been massacred by injury and GB has had some hurt players too. Darrisaw the biggest loss but were able to replace him with a decent free agent who was the right situation at the right time (again, incredible luck this year).

We're all wondering about next year and the future .... but damn, maybe this year really is the year of destiny?
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Oh yeah! Even if we don't win another game, this season has been so much fun.
A roaring success no matter what happens going forward!

You know Packer media and fans did not expect that to happen Sunday. So much fun.

I recall listening to the Locked On NFC North preseason roundtable and Luke Braun was treated as an afterthought by the other three team media members.

The best part of sports is unexpected success. Such a fun season.
 
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Ogee Ogilthorpe said:
So, to simplify what you're saying, you are infinitely more confident that an unproven highly drafted soon-to-be 22-year old rookie WILL play at as high or a higher level than Darnold has this year, than you are that Darnold can even merely keep pace with what he's doing right now. You are THAT convinced that this is as good as it will ever get with Darnold and it's only going to go downhill from here.
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I would rather take my chances over the next several years with a very talented, 6 years younger QB, who by some accounts was already pushing Darnold in the pre-season, and looked very good in his first preseason game, over paying Darnold 45+ million for the next several years, who has had pretty much everything go his way this season, and it's his only good season of his career.

The Vikings didn't dump Kirk Cousins and draft a potential franchise QB to sign themselves up for a future QB who's ceiling is a higher paid Kirk Cousins.
 



Ogee Ogilthorpe said:
So, to simplify what you're saying, you are infinitely more confident that an unproven highly drafted soon-to-be 22-year old rookie WILL play at as high or a higher level than Darnold has this year, than you are that Darnold can even merely keep pace with what he's doing right now. You are THAT convinced that this is as good as it will ever get with Darnold and it's only going to go downhill from here.
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One other possible point, is that JJ, still hasn’t been medically cleared to practice since the surgery. So you roll with him?

I can understand if he was a true backup, got some practice reps and maybe a little PT, but??

What about the locker room. You could probably speak to this better than me. Those guys love him.
 

GopherWeatherGuy said:
I would rather take my chances over the next several years with a very talented, 6 years younger QB, who by some accounts was already pushing Darnold in the pre-season, and looked very good in his first preseason game, over paying Darnold 45+ million for the next several years, who has had pretty much everything go his way this season, and it's his only good season of his career.

The Vikings didn't dump Kirk Cousins and draft a potential franchise QB to sign themselves up for a future QB who's ceiling is a higher paid Kirk Cousins.
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That's why this is going to be a very interesting decision. I will say that I think there's a fair difference between what the fans want and what they want in the building.

Staff/Owner/GMs aren't necessarily thinking about 2, 4+ years down the road, like some fans. They think about winning NOW. They aren't consumed with "QB on a rookie deal" as much as a lot of fans are. They have a guy in the building that is winning games, and winning games at a high level.

Gopher_In_NYC said:
One other possible point, is that JJ, still hasn’t been medically cleared to practice since the surgery. So you roll with him?
I can understand if he was a true backup, got some practice reps and maybe a little PT, but??

What about the locker room. You could probably speak to this better than me. Those guys love him.
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I think there are a lot of guys in the locker room who, yes, would have a hard time letting Darnold walk; guys that are fighting for their careers, for paychecks, to win division titles and championships, for the prospects of an unproven rookie QB. And I'm a big, big JJM fan.

At the end of the day, I trust whatever KOC and Josh McCown want to do, implicitly.

I will say this; if they move on from Darnold after this season to roll with JJM, I'm here to tell you they see something SPECIAL, like truly generationally special, with JJM. But do they?
 


Ogee Ogilthorpe said:
Staff/Owner/GMs aren't necessarily thinking about 2, 4+ years down the road, like some fans. They think about winning NOW. They aren't consumed with "QB on a rookie deal" as much as a lot of fans are. They have a guy in the building that is winning games, and winning games at a high level.
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I agree to an extent. KAM and KOC are both going to get extended this offseason, and there is very little concern about their futures with the Vikings. They had a plan in place to use Darnold for a year and then move on. They already have a backup plan for JJ next season with Jones. Good GMs and coaches have short term and long term plans and backup plans, and it seems the Vikings have it all accounted for right now.

I think the locker room angle is overrated. Overall culture matters the most, which is great under KOC. The locker room loved Kirk 2 years ago, yet they moved on. The locker room loved Keenum in 2017, yet they moved on. Who was one of the guys in the middle of the Darnold mob on Sunday? JJ McCarthy.
 

Ogee Ogilthorpe said:
That's why this is going to be a very interesting decision. I will say that I think there's a fair difference between what the fans want and what they want in the building.

Staff/Owner/GMs aren't necessarily thinking about 2, 4+ years down the road, like some fans. They think about winning NOW. They aren't consumed with "QB on a rookie deal" as much as a lot of fans are. They have a guy in the building that is winning games, and winning games at a high level.



I think there are a lot of guys in the locker room who, yes, would have a hard time letting Darnold walk; guys that are fighting for their careers, for paychecks, to win division titles and championships, for the prospects of an unproven rookie QB. And I'm a big, big JJM fan.

At the end of the day, I trust whatever KOC and Josh McCown want to do, implicitly.

I will say this; if they move on from Darnold after this season to roll with JJM, I'm here to tell you they see something SPECIAL, like truly generationally special, with JJM. But do they?
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Especially because overall the rookie QB class has been promising/respectable to an arguably a generational talent with McDaniels, showing that thus far.

Doesn’t there have to be one bust? That’s just my wacky odds superstition kicking in.

Just win the SB Sam and it won’t be a discussion any longer.
 

GopherWeatherGuy said:
I agree to an extent. KAM and KOC are both going to get extended this offseason, and there is very little concern about their futures with the Vikings. They had a plan in place to use Darnold for a year and then move on. They already have a backup plan for JJ next season with Jones. Good GMs and coaches have short term and long term plans and backup plans, and it seems the Vikings have it all accounted for right now.

I think the locker room angle is overrated. Overall culture matters the most, which is great under KOC. The locker room loved Kirk 2 years ago, yet they moved on. The locker room loved Keenum in 2017, yet they moved on. Who was one of the guys in the middle of the Darnold mob on Sunday? JJ McCarthy.
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I think it's going to be one of the most interesting offseasons in Purple history. I'll be on the edge of my seat, no doubt!
 

Rams going to rest starters. 😳

Rams will now get the 4th seed instead of the 3rd.

In the wild card round, Rams will now play loser of Minnesota/Detroit rather than playing Washington.

Bizarre.

(Loser of Detroit/Minnesota will now play Los Angeles rather than TB.)
 
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golf said:
Interesting Phil Mackey says after the season he would send a memo to all other 31 teams. He would say that he wants a #1 pick for either Darnold or McCarthy.

If a team agrees and chooses McCarthy, he would then commit to a long term contract with Darnold and spread out the cap hits so that the biggest hits are down the road. On the other hand, if a team chooses Darnold, he would be in a position to take advantage of 4 yrs rookie scale contract. Either way Vikes would also have an extra first rounder in this year's draft.

Not saying I necessarily agree with this take, but it is interesting.
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Isn’t Darnold on a 1 year contract? So he’s a free agent after this year, with a Vikings option of a franchise tag?
 

golf said:
Rams going to rest starters. 😳

Rams will now get the 4th seed instead of the 3rd.

In the wild card round, Rams will now play loser of Minnesota/Detroit rather than playing Washington.

Bizarre.

(Loser of Detroit/Minnesota will now play Los Angeles rather than TB.)
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Doing this on purpose because they think they'll have a better shot against those teams?

Since they beat the Vikings and Stafford/Goff perhaps somehow gets in his head (they think)?
 

golf said:
Rams going to rest starters. 😳

Rams will now get the 4th seed instead of the 3rd.

In the wild card round, Rams will now play loser of Minnesota/Detroit rather than playing Washington.

Bizarre.

(Loser of Detroit/Minnesota will now play Los Angeles rather than TB.)
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Sean McVey is not a real man like Dan Campbell. 😎

Honestly I don't get this. The gap between hosting Washington vs Detroit or Minnesota is massive IMO.
 



howeda7 said:
I think it's assumed that franchising him is a given at this point.
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Agreed. This realization seems to have happened overnight for many, myself included.

As others have already mentioned, going into next season relying solely on an unproven, injured rookie seems quite reckless even if we sign Daniel Jones as his backup.

The Franchise Tag doesn't commit long-term cap space and still allows for building a roster around a QB on his rookie contract for at least a couple of years.
 
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Slim Tubby said:
Agreed. This realization seems to have happened overnight for many.

As others have already mentioned, going into next season relying solely on an unproven, injured rookie seems quite reckless even if we sign Daniel Jones as his backup.

The Franchise Tag doesn't commit long-term cap space and still allows for building a roster around a QB on his rookie contract for at least a couple of years.
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As far as I know, it also doesn't preclude you from negotiating a long term contract later in the offseason either (after they trade McCarthy etc).
 



golf said:
I have read comments from their fans and most are on board with resting starters.

Makes no sense to me at all.
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Pretty simple, they value the rest more than than enhancing their chance at the #3 seed.

Seahawks aren't playing for anything more than spoiler, so the Rams could win anyway.

Regardless, the Rams are playing at Home. Already have beaten the Vikings and have hung tough with Detroit.

Totally get it.
 

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