The Minnesota Vikings‘ Kevin O’Connell won the AP NFL Coach of the Year award Thursday night at about 10:30 p.m. ET. It only took a few minutes after that before the conversation turned to one of the NFL’s top offseason storylines: His quarterback.
Speaking to a handful of Minnesota reporters by phone, O’Connell said it’s clear to him that veteran Sam Darnold will be a starter somewhere in 2025 — and that a return to the Vikings has in no way been ruled out.
“Look, you guys know how I feel about Sam,” O’Connell said. “He is a guy that we identified last year as somebody who could come in and be successful. And really no matter where he was at before he arrived in his quarterback journey, it was about maximizing our time together. And I think we did that, and I think it was a very special year for Sam. And what that earned him is, everybody in our league now thinks he’s a bona fide legitimate starting quarterback and can win a lot of football games. He won 14 of them [in 2024].
“So he’s earned the right to be a free agent, but we will continue to have ongoing dialogue and discussions with him and his representation.”
Playing on a one-year, $10 million contract, Darnold threw for a career-high 4,319 and 35 touchdowns in 17 starts. The performance earned him the third-most votes for the AP NFL Comeback Player of the Year Award, won Thursday night by Cincinnati Bengals quarterback Joe Burrow.
Over the past three weeks, the Vikings have working through options that include signing Darnold to a multiyear contract, using the franchise tag to retain him for 2025 or handing the keys to 2024 first-round pick J.J. McCarthy, who has resumed on-field training after missing the season because of a torn meniscus in his right knee.
O’Connell said Thursday night that he’s “really excited ” about where McCarthy is in his rehabilitation and added: “He’s really hit the ground running as the true offseason has begun.”
Appearing on The Rich Eisen Show earlier this week, McCarthy said his conversations with O’Connell have been only about what was “the greatest thing” for the team.
“All I can ask for is a fair opportunity,” McCarthy said. “That’s the one thing that I feel like everybody’s given and it’s fundamental. When money gets involved, things get complicated and reps get skewed and there’s different things that come into the whole political world that everyone talks about. But I really just have to focus on controlling what I can control. My feelings don’t matter. I’m not getting any grace. There’s no sympathy. This is the big leagues.”
