The Minnesota Vikings did not sign Daniel Jones midway through the 2024 season for him to ride the bench behind Sam Darnold; they saw the move as a de facto job shadow for the 2025 season.
The Vikings face an uncertain future ahead at quarterback with Darnold expected to be the top free-agent quarterback and J.J. McCarthy on the mend from meniscus surgery. Minnesota needs to decide by March whether to re-sign Darnold or let him walk.
If Darnold leaves, the Vikings need a veteran buffer to protect McCarthy if he is not ready to start Week 1.
Head coach Kevin O'Connell confirmed that he and several Vikings players have seen signs that Jones could fill that role.
“I have a lot of confidence that Daniel could have a ton of success in our offense," O'Connell said Feb. 7 on Pro Football Talk. "I can’t tell you how many times Justin [Jefferson] or Jordan [Addison] or one of these guys at a practice would say ‘that was an unbelievable throw. This guy can really throw it.’ "
After being released by the New York Giants in November, Jones arrived in Minnesota for a crash course in O'Connell's offense and quarterback system.
The Vikings coach is highly regarded as a quarterback guru for his work in helping Darnold reach the first Pro Bowl of his career and coaxing an NFL record eight game-winning drives out of Kirk Cousins in 2022. It's led to him being the first Vikings coach to secure multiple 13-win seasons -- and he did so in just three years.
O'Connell received the NFL Coach of the Year award at the NFL Honors on Feb. 6 for his efforts in Darnold's career rehab -- a treatment that Jones could undergo next season.
O'Connell has found ways to get more out of his quarterbacks throughout his tenure in Minnesota, which has led to the dilemma of what to do with Darnold going forward.
Darnold is expected to garner offers in free agency for a contract worth at least $30 million a year. His performance was worthy of a contract of that stature, but given O'Connell's ability to make more with less, Minnesota may opt to move on and use that cap space in other ways.
McCarthy's average salary of just $5.4 million through 2027 offers immense benefits in building a better roster around him in Minnesota.
The Vikings were comfortable signing Darnold to a one-year, $10 million deal a year ago under the stipulation he would compete with McCarthy for the starting job.
Jones could see a similar contract from Minnesota as it looks like Darnold may be out of the VIkings' price range.
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Dallas Cowboys wide receiver CeeDee Lamb reminded teammates to keep their cool after the team had multiple skirmishes during the first two days of training camp. Rookie defensive end Donovan Ezeiruaku and tight end Brevyn Spann-Ford got involved in a brief scuffle on Tuesday. At the following practice on Wednesday, a fight broke out between safety Markquese Bell and TE Tyler Neville. New head coach Brian Schottenheimer then stopped practice and pulled the whole team together. He said the next player who threw a punch would be kicked out of practice (via Joseph Hoyt of The Dallas Morning News). "We've got to be professional," Lamb said of the incident after practice, per ESPN's Todd Archer. "I get it that we have a lot of animosity and tension between us and understanding that we want to proclaim our dominance and show like aggressiveness on both sides of the ball, but then again, to what extent?" Fighting in training camp isn't uncommon. It's an intense environment. Many are trying to prove themselves before teams trim their rosters to 53 players. However, too much brawling can threaten to tear a locker room apart. A lack of discipline was also one reason the Cowboys replaced Mike McCarthy with Schottenheimer this offseason. According to NFLPenalties.com, Dallas drew the league's sixth-most flags (128) last season. Per Archer, there were no more fights after Schottenheimer pulled the team aside. Still, the incidents raise questions about his ability to maintain control. The coach spent Wednesday morning's meeting discussing two plays where DE Sam Williams was too physical and sent to the sideline. His players must not have received the message. It's good for Dallas that Lamb seems to be echoing Schottenheimer's sentiments, but the rookie HC still must get through to his team. Rebounding from a 7-10 season could already prove challenging for the Cowboys. As of Wednesday, ESPN's Football Power Index gives Dallas a 34.5% chance to make the playoffs. Infighting will make that even more difficult.
Carter Hart, Dillon Dube, Callan Foote, Michael McLeod and Alex Formenton have been found not guilty by Justice Maria Carroccia in London, Ontario, according to reporting from The Athletic, after being charged in connection with an alleged sexual assault involving the 2018 Canadian men’s national junior team. Carroccia said that she did not find E.M.’s [the alleged victim] evidence “credible or reliable,” in explaining her reasoning. “Having found that I cannot rely upon the evidence of E.M. and then considering the evidence in this trial as a whole, I conclude that the Crown cannot meet its onus on any of the counts before me,” Carroccia said. The allegations against Dube, Foote, Formenton, Hart and McLeod first became public in May of 2022, when reports emerged that Hockey Canada had paid to settle a lawsuit with a woman, known in court documents as E.M., who said she was sexually assaulted by eight players “over several hours” in a London hotel room on July 18, 2018. No charges were levied as a result of the initial investigation by local police, which was closed in February 2019, but the case was reopened after the 2022 report. Formal charges were then brought against the five defendants on Jan. 30, 2024. The trial began on April 22, 2025, and the verdicts were reached solely by Justice Carroccia after two mistrials influenced her to dismiss the jury. The NHL does not have a formal policy for players accused of or charged with domestic violence, sexual assault or similar crimes. Instead, the four players who were under NHL contracts at the time – Dube, Foote, Hart and McLeod – were granted indefinite leaves of absence by their clubs shortly before the charges were announced. All of them were pending restricted free agents on expiring contracts and were not extended qualifying offers, making them unrestricted free agents as of July 1, 2024. When asked about the playing eligibility of the defendants, NHL commissioner Gary Bettman has continually deferred action until after a verdict was reached. While none of the players are formally suspended by the league, similar situations have routinely required some sort of permission from league offices for them to play in or return to the NHL. If teams approach any of them with a contract offer, they will presumably wait for that guidance before registering the deal.
The Edmonton Oilers came so close to winning a title this year, but they fell in the Stanley Cup Final once again. For the second straight season, Edmonton wasn't able to get over the hump and they now face some big questions going forward. The front office entered the offseason with the intent to upgrade the roster, but so far, that hasn't happened. The Oilers haven't done very much to improve the team, and they still have some glaring holes along the roster. Due to the inactivity, NHL writer Adam Gretz of Bleacher Report has given them a letter grade of "C" for the offseason. Gretz graded every NHL team on their summer so far, and the Oilers have fallen behind other teams. "The goaltending issues are still a glaring weakness here that needs to be addressed. The answer is not on the roster. The other big elephant in the room that needs to be addressed is the fact that Connor McDavid is entering the final year of his contract and no extension has been signed yet," Gretz wrote. As Gretz mentions, the situation around star Connor McDavid is something to keep an eye on. McDavid wants to win at the highest level, and he will be entering the final year of his contract. If the Oilers don't solve some of the roster issues, it could see McDavid potentially leave the organization next summer. Some around the league believe that McDavid will at least test free agency, to see what else could be out there. This puts even more pressure on the Oilers' front office to make some moves this offseason, with the fate of McDavid hanging in the balance. So far, the team hasn't done much, but there is still plenty of time to change the narrative around the summer.
The Seattle Mariners have been heavily linked to Arizona Diamondbacks' third baseman Eugenio Suarez as the trade deadline comes up on July 31. Suarez, 34, is putting together a sensational season season for Arizona, and his 36 home runs trail only Shohei Ohtani in the National League. His 86 RBIs lead baseball entering play on Thursday. He would be a major upgrade to the Mariners lineup, and it would reunite him in the clubhouse, where he played for the M's in 2022 and 2023. As for what it will cost the M's to get Suarez? That's a bit of a guessing game, but the M's do have several interesting pieces to offer the D-backs. Seattle has eight top 100 prospects, and a few intriguing young big-leaguers like Logan Evans. However, former executive Jim Bowden of The Athletic wants the Mariners to make a wild trade for Suarez, as he wrote on Thursday: A package highlighted by middle infielder Michael Arroyo and right-hander Ryan Sloan could be enough to get a deal done. Arroyo, 20, has reached base at a .417 clip this season between High A and Double A. He has 17 homers and 49 RBIs. A second-round pick in 2024, Sloan has a 3.43 ERA over 15 starts this season at Low A. The 19-year-old has logged a strikeout-to-walk ratio of 5.82. Arroyo is currently ranked as the No. 60 prospect in baseball, per MLB Pipeline, and Sloan is ranked No. 61. While the Diamondbacks can ask for that package, it certainly doesn't seem likely. For comparison, the Mariners acquired Luis Castillo at the 2022 trade deadline. That did cost them two Top-100 prospects (Edwin Arroyo and Noelvi Marte), but Castillo was younger, a pitcher, and under control for 1.5 more years. I just can't see the M's making a deal like this for a player five years older who is a rental. Mariners fans couldn't believe it, either: Per @HairlineSports on social media: I’m not even a SEA fan and the package you have them giving up is about 5x more than any other team (Jaxon) wiggins for Geno is enough but Ms have to add BOTH Arroyo and Sloan LOL Sloan might be SP1 for prospects a year from now From Travis Olson: What the hell are you talking about. So you have the mariners giving up two prospects in the top 79 in baseball. Meanwhile the Yankees give up no top 100 prospects. Come on. East coast bias much.
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