Vikings QB Sam Darnold Showing All the Intangibles Needed to be Great
Much is being said about whether the Minnesota Vikings should retain quarterback Sam Darnold, but given how well Darnold has played, can they even afford to do so? When it comes to the counting stats, Darnold might be pricing himself out of Minnesota.
The former No. 3 overall pick currently ranks seventh in passing yards and fourth in passer rating. He’s even first in completed air yards per completion and per pass attempt, besting former teammate and fellow long-term contract seeker Brock Purdy.
Sam has one Achilles heel, though… According to Bill Barnwell of ESPN, his sack rate is a problem.
“[W]hile it can be easy to attribute sacks to a struggling offensive line, Darnold has run above-average to unplayable sack rates at different times during his career, including an 11.5% rate in a small sample with the 49ers last season. His career sack rate is 7.7% across a time period when the average quarterback has been sacked 6.1% of the time. The Vikings lost star left tackle Christian Darrisaw to a midseason knee injury, which didn’t help matters, but Darnold actually ran a higher sack rate with Darrisaw on the field (9.2%) than he has with Darrisaw’s replacements (8.0%).”
-Bill Barnwell, ESPN+ (Subscription required)
But wouldn’t an improving sack rate, despite a worse offensive line be indicative of Darnold’s ability to adjust his game to his surroundings? Just look at all the injuries on offense this season. Jordan Addison, TJ Hockenson, Josh Oliver, Dalton Risner, Darrisaw. No matter the personnel, Sam has adjusted and found a way to thrive. That’s not something you can teach.
Head coach Kevin O’Connell obviously deserves credit for adjusting his play calls around the offensive line issues and differing injury absences. But what about when the head coach isn’t able to get the play in?
Game-winning touchdown drive proved Sam Darnold’s ability to improvise
Michael David Smith of NBC Sports revealed that Darnold led part of his game-winning drive against Seattle without being able to hear his head coach and play-caller in his helmet, after a technical difficulty cut off communication.
The only thing KOC could convey to his QB before the helmet speaker failed was the formation he wanted on the field. Darnold had to do the rest. O’Connell praised Darnold for his ability to improvise, after the game.
“I was trying to get him a call and my headset, the last thing he heard was the formation,” O’Connell said. “So his ability to get a played called, and I’ve got to be honest with you, I don’t know what he particularly called. I just know that when I saw him have space and go run like he did, I was relieved. I know what that play call is, QB run left. What it seemed like.”
Kevin O’Connell – Quote via NBC Sports
Darnold stepped up in the pocket and sacrificed his body to deliver a perfect throw to Justin Jefferson between Seattle defenders for the game-winning touchdown. This all occurred after Darnold took a nasty hit that left him limping, indicating Darnold’s ability to deliver on the most important intangible: availability.
Backup quarterback Nick Mullens never got into the game, and has played in just four games this season, attempting two passes. Two of those games were blowouts against Atlanta and Houston. Darnold returned in the other two games to lead the Vikings over the Jets and the Bears.
So the question might not be whether Minnesota can afford to retain Darnold, but whether the Vikings can afford to let him go. You have to assume San Francisco would be open to bringing Darnold back if it’s for less than Brock Purdy demands, and the Vikings have the cap space to assure that doesn’t happen.
It’s all going to depend on how Darnold’s first foray into the playoffs goes and whether the Vikings choose to franchise tag him or not as a result.
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