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Minnesota Vikings: NFL Insider Raises Huge Red Flag About Sam Darnold For 2024 Season

Originally posted on Gridiron Heroics | By Evan Massey | Last updated 5/24/24

Looking ahead to the 2024 NFL season, the Minnesota Vikings have a massive decision to make at the quarterback position. Sam Darnold appears to be the early favorite to start, but first-round pIck J.J. McCarthy is still in the competition and has a shot to win it during training camp and preseason action.

While Darnold appears to have the early lead, there are some major questions about him. Throughout his NFL career, Darnold has failed to play a high level when the games mean the most. Usually, he falls apart fairly quickly in the regular season.

Many fans and media members expect Darnold to win the Week 1 starting job, but they expect McCarthy to take over under center at some point during the season. That is the most likely outcome of the entire situation for the Minnesota Vikings.

NFL Insider Raises Huge Red Flag About Minnesota Vikings QB Sam Darnold

NFL Network insider Ian Rapoport spoke out and did not hold back his opinion about Darnold. He laid out some brutal truths about the Minnesota Vikings’ veteran quarterback.

While Darnold is going to look good early on during training camp and the preseason, Rapoport warns against buying into that hype.

“He is going to look good, this is something he has done his entire career. When it’s the spring, when it’s the preseason or when he has been unbothered he has looked excellent. It’s really a matter of when he gets in games, is he the same quarterback when it doesn’t all go perfectly?”

From The Insiders on @NFLNetwork: The #Vikings will have one of the more interesting QB situations in the league in 2024. pic.twitter.com/JIlfkQBuFV

— Ian Rapoport (@RapSheet) May 23, 2024

Darnold has had a rollercoaster of a career. After being selected with the No. 3 overall pick in the 2018 NFL Draft, many thought he would develop into a superstar. That never ended up happening.

Throughout his 66-game career thus far, Darnold has completed just 59.7 percent of his pass attempts for 12,064 yards, 63 touchdowns, and 56 interceptions. Those numbers tell the same story that Rapoport is explaining.

For the Minnesota Vikings, the start of the season may go well with Darnold under center. But, at some point, he has always fallen off and ended up finding himself back on the bench.

More than likely, the Vikings will still give the starting nod to Darnold. McCarthy will be waiting in the wings for the veteran quarterback to falter. When that happens, head coach Kevin O’Connell will likely move quickly to replace Darnold with McCarthy.

All of that being said, it will be interesting to see how the quarterback competition unfolds. Past that, if Darnold is the starter, it will be even more interesting to see how long he lasts in that role.

This article first appeared on Gridiron Heroics and was syndicated with permission.

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