Stephen A. Smith Absolutely Roasts Vikings for Letting Sam Darnold Walk to Seattle

Seattle Strikes Gold While Minnesota Plays With Fire

Meanwhile, the Seattle Seahawks are probably laughing all the way to the bank. They swooped in and signed Darnold to a three-year, $100.5 million deal, essentially getting a proven quarterback who just led a team to the playoffs. Not exactly rocket science, right?

The Seahawks didn’t overcomplicate things. They saw a guy who performed at an elite level and thought, “Hey, maybe we should sign that guy instead of gambling on an unproven rookie.” Revolutionary thinking, truly.

The McCarthy Gamble: Bold or Reckless?

Now, let’s be fair to J.J. McCarthy for a hot second. The kid has talent, and his college career at Michigan wasn’t completely without merit. But here’s the thing that’s eating away at Stephen A. and should be keeping Vikings fans up at night: McCarthy has exactly zero NFL experience.

Not “limited” experience. Not “needs to develop” experience. Zero. Zilch. Nada.

O’Connell is essentially betting the franchise on a player who managed just 27 preseason dropbacks. Twenty-seven! I’ve seen high school quarterbacks get more game action in a single season.

The 49ers Connection Nobody’s Talking About

Here’s a delicious irony that makes this whole situation even more frustrating for Minnesota: Darnold’s transformation didn’t happen overnight. His year backing up Brock Purdy in San Francisco was crucial to his development. Kyle Shanahan, who actually worked with Darnold daily, wasn’t surprised by his Minnesota success.

“He got the keys to the team, and to be in that situation also when he had a good, upcoming team that had a lot of talent, that had a good coaching staff, and it was kind of the perfect time for him, and he was so ready for it,” Shanahan explained.

Translation: Darnold was ready to be great, and the Vikings just handed that greatness to their division rival’s conference foe.

Vikings Fans Deserve Better Than This Gamble

Look, I get it. Teams fall in love with potential. They see a young quarterback and think about what he could become rather than appreciating what they already have. But the Vikings aren’t rebuilding—they’re trying to win now with an aging core and a championship window that’s rapidly closing.

Justin Jefferson isn’t getting any younger. The defense has pieces that need maximizing right now, not in two or three years when McCarthy might figure things out. This team was one game away from the NFC Championship, and instead of building on that momentum with a proven commodity, they’re starting over with question marks.

Stephen A. captured this frustration perfectly: “I found myself saying, ‘The faith that you’re showing him, like damn! He has 27 dropbacks in the NFL preseason; that’s it, that’s all you got!’ And you said, ‘To hell with everybody else.'”

The Bottom Line: Minnesota Made a Massive Mistake

At the end of the day, Stephen A. Smith is absolutely right to call out this decision. The Vikings had a quarterback who proved he could elevate their team to playoff heights, and they chose to gamble on uncertainty instead of building on success.

Darnold may not be Tom Brady, but he’s a legitimate starting quarterback who demonstrated he can thrive in the right system. The Vikings had that system, had that success, and had the perfect foundation to build upon.

Instead, they’re rolling the dice on a rookie while watching their former quarterback potentially lead a division rival to success. If that’s not worthy of a Stephen A. Smith rant, I don’t know what is.

The 2025 season will tell the real story, but right now, it looks like Seattle got the better end of this deal while Minnesota is left hoping their gamble pays off. Good luck with that, Vikings fans. You’re going to need it.