Once upon a time, Sam Darnold was considered at best, a journeyman backup quarterback. Some even considered him one of the biggest busts in the NFL. However, that was before he signed with the Minnesota Vikings. In an unlikely turn of events in the new NFL regular season, Darnold and the Vikings are one of the remaining undefeated teams at 5-0. What is perhaps crazier is that Darnold took over the starting job after the injury to rookie, J.J. McArthy, in the preseason and has played the best football of his entire career.
How well has played you ask? Per DraftKings, Darnold is now a dark-horse MVP candidate at +1,300 odds as of October 7th, 2024. The players currently ahead of him in terms of MVP odds are Patrick Mahomes, Josh Allen, Lamar Jackson, C.J. Stroud, and Jayden Daniels. However, if Minnesota keeps up this undefeated streak, expect Darnold to rise in the MVP odds ladder.
Sam Darnold Emerges as Possible MVP Candidate
Sam Darnold’s Season So Far
While Darnold is not exactly a lock as of yet to win the MVP, he very well could win Comeback Player of the Year. So far this season, he has logged a completion percentage of 63.5 percent which is a career-best thus far, 1,111 passing yards, and 11 touchdowns to four interceptions. Darnold also leads the league in touchdown percentage of eight percent, 8.1 yards gained per pass attempt, and a passer rating of 103.4, which is another career-best.
He has been a perfect fit in the Minnesota offensive scheme and the weapons at his disposal such as Justin Jefferson have also made his life easier without missing a beat. Sam Darnold struggled a bit in the last win against his former team, the New York Jets, but still did enough to help the Vikings remain undefeated. All in all, Darnold and the Vikings have been the biggest surprise of this year.
Minnesota Has Been the Surprise of the Year
While Sam Darnold has been impressive, Minnesota as a whole has been playing at an elite level. Their defense has been a revelation this year led by Andrew Van Ginkel and Harrison Smith. The defensive unit is currently fourth in opponents points per game (15.2) and second in opponent rushing yards per game (67.2). They also rank second in opponent rushing first down percentage (15.63 percent) and have limited some of the better running backs in the game this season such as Breece Hall and Josh Jacobs. Considering all of this, the Minnesota Vikings and Sam Darnold have continued to impress and do not look like they are going to slow down anytime soon.
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