What the Vikings Would’ve Sacrificed by Keeping Sam Darnold

It's become a no-brainer that the Minnesota Vikings messed up by letting Sam Darnold walk while handing the franchise's keys to J.J. McCarthy, but besides high-end QB play, what else would the Vikings have missed out on had they decided to re-sign Darnold to the same three-year, $105 million deal that he signed with the Seattle Seahawks?

If you'll recall, a big reason the Vikings let Darnold walk was that it allowed them to build the roster around McCarthy and his rookie contract, which carried a $4.95 million cap hit in 2025. That decision, which put immense pressure on McCarthy to lead a Super Bowl-caliber roster despite having zero starting NFL experience, allowed Minnesota to spend like kings in free agency.

Minnesota signed 16 players for a $269.5 million. Spotrac lists the only team ahead of them as the New England Patriots ($364.3 million on 19 players).

The Vikings brought back safety Harrison Smith, running back Aaron Jones, Pro Bowl cornerback Byron Murphy, Jr., safety Theo Jackson, and punter Ryan Wright. Those returnees combined for $32.7 million against the 2025 salary cap.

Minnesota also brought in outsiders by signing defensive tackles Jonathan Allen and Javon Hargrave, offensive linemen Ryan Kelly, Will Fries, and Justin Skule, cornerbacks Isaiah Rodgers, Jeff Okudah, and Tavierre Thomas, linebacker Eric Wilson, and wide receivers Rondale Moore and Tim Jones. Combined, those players counted for $34.9 million against the cap.

Add up all the signings, and the Vikings accrued roughly $67.6 million in cap hits, which represents 24.2% of the NFL's 279.2 million salary cap. In other words, a quarter of the roster was constructed in free agency, with some of that money only available to them because they didn't re-sign Darnold.

Darnold played with a $14.4 million cap hit this season, but the Seahawks will carry his $36.4 million cap hit in 2026, and then take a $41.9 million hit in 2027 if he's still on the roster. Overall, that's not too bad for a quarterback who led his team to the Super Bowl.

Let's say the Vikings had brought Darnold back on a $14.4 million cap hit this season. That's money they wouldn't have had for free agency. And not only would it have affected their ability to pay for premium talent on one-year deals, but also on multi-year contracts because they would've needed to budget for Darnold's larger cap hits in future years.

Would that have meant not being able to give Murphy a three-year, $66 million contract?

Would Fries have signed elsewhere if he couldn't get five years and $88 million from Minnesota?

Maybe the Vikings would've been blocked from beefing up the interior D-line with Allen (three years, $51 million) or Hargrave (two years, $30 million).

Perhaps it would've meant the Vikings couldn't afford to bring back Smith and Jones, who served as veteran leaders while carrying cap hits of $9.9 million and $8.4 million, respectively.

Darnold, clearly, would've been the most valuable of any free agent the Vikings signed. But it would've come with repercussions and forced Vikings leaders, namely general manager Kwesi Adofo-Mensah and head coach Kevin O'Connell, to pick and choose the right players from the group they wound up signing after passing on Darnold.

All of this raises a bigger question: Can Adofo-Mensah and O'Connell get it right this offseason after fumbling so badly a year ago? We'll find out soon enough.