Sam Darnold, new Viking's QB

@"HappyViking" said:

@"Zanary" said:

@"HappyViking" said:

@"StickyBun" said:

@"HappyViking" said: Are the other NFCN teams paying Kwesi's salary by any chance?  It almost seems intentional how he's making this roster crappier each off-season and void of any rational winning team plan.

Looks bleak right now, but you can see they are signing FAs. If they can hit on a QB in this Draft they like, its a plan that would be considered coming together. KAM needed some flexibility from the cap, that's what he worked toward each year....getting out of the cap hole. They'll have a shitload of cap room next year. They tried to resign Cousins.....are we going to blame KAM for not matching a 4 year contract with the guarantees Atlanta put in there? Not with a straight face.

I don't entirely blame KAM for not signing Cousins.  Actually, I now
hope Cousins falls flat on his dorky face in Atlanta.  The fact that KAM
doesn't have a reasonable succession plan for QB in year three of his
"rebuild" is his fault, however.  Did the Vikes believe Cousins when he
said he wanted to stay a Viking?  Seems like they did, but Kirk showed
them he only wanted to stay a Viking if they gave him the most
guaranteed money.I guess I blame Kwesi and Kirk equally. 
Kwesi has egg on his face (again) while "gosh, gee, golly good guy" Kirk is flipping him "the bird"
on his way to the Falcons.

The Vikes don't have a QB now, and everyone here knows they won't come close to playoffs without one.  They went from having the best NFCN QB to the worst in year 3 of Kwesi's rebuild.

...um:

no, I think you're missing the biggest part of Atlanta's deal- it's for 4 years.

Kirk wants to keep playing, the Vikings were looking for a short "bridge" contract. Given that some very good QBs have played to and past 40, Kirk thinks he can do the same and wanted the option. The Vikings didn't offer that.

The contract sounds huge, but it's still $10 million per season below current top dollar...and it's not all guaranteed, despite assumptions of that being a sticking point with the Vikings.

So, while I'll always pull for the Vikings above all others, I'll be watching Kirko's career...and, if he has a better 4 years with Atlanta than the Vikings do without with, both KAM and the haters can add that to the ways that the Kohl's Cash Dork proved them wrong.

But money wasn't an issue for our beloved Kirko Chains, and he just wanted to stay a Viking.  Do you remember when he said that?  I guess maybe that wasn't the case.  Kirk talks out of both sides of his mouth.  Yep, "Mr Good Guy" Kirk won, and Kwesi's Vikes lost.  I'll never be cheering for Cousins.

@"Zanary" said:

@"HappyViking" said:

@"Zanary" said:

@"HappyViking" said:

@"StickyBun" said:

@"HappyViking" said: Are the other NFCN teams paying Kwesi's salary by any chance?  It almost seems intentional how he's making this roster crappier each off-season and void of any rational winning team plan.

Looks bleak right now, but you can see they are signing FAs. If they can hit on a QB in this Draft they like, its a plan that would be considered coming together. KAM needed some flexibility from the cap, that's what he worked toward each year....getting out of the cap hole. They'll have a shitload of cap room next year. They tried to resign Cousins.....are we going to blame KAM for not matching a 4 year contract with the guarantees Atlanta put in there? Not with a straight face.

I don't entirely blame KAM for not signing Cousins.  Actually, I now
hope Cousins falls flat on his dorky face in Atlanta.  The fact that KAM
doesn't have a reasonable succession plan for QB in year three of his
"rebuild" is his fault, however.  Did the Vikes believe Cousins when he
said he wanted to stay a Viking?  Seems like they did, but Kirk showed
them he only wanted to stay a Viking if they gave him the most
guaranteed money.I guess I blame Kwesi and Kirk equally. 
Kwesi has egg on his face (again) while "gosh, gee, golly good guy" Kirk is flipping him "the bird"
on his way to the Falcons.

The Vikes don't have a QB now, and everyone here knows they won't come close to playoffs without one.  They went from having the best NFCN QB to the worst in year 3 of Kwesi's rebuild.

...um:

no, I think you're missing the biggest part of Atlanta's deal- it's for 4 years.

Kirk wants to keep playing, the Vikings were looking for a short "bridge" contract. Given that some very good QBs have played to and past 40, Kirk thinks he can do the same and wanted the option. The Vikings didn't offer that.

The contract sounds huge, but it's still $10 million per season below current top dollar...and it's not all guaranteed, despite assumptions of that being a sticking point with the Vikings.

So, while I'll always pull for the Vikings above all others, I'll be watching Kirko's career...and, if he has a better 4 years with Atlanta than the Vikings do without with, both KAM and the haters can add that to the ways that the Kohl's Cash Dork proved them wrong.

But money wasn't an issue for our beloved Kirko Chains, and he just wanted to stay a Viking.  Do you remember when he said that?  I guess maybe that wasn't the case.  Kirk talks out of both sides of his mouth.  Yep, "Mr Good Guy" Kirk won, and Kwesi's Vikes lost.  I'll never be cheering for Cousins.

So, you'll ignore the central point of a post despite quoting it. Gotcha.

When you're the #1 or #2 free agent in the league, you're likely gonna get offered to get paid. Look it up.

.@ColinCowherd cannot quit Sam Darnold... pic.twitter.com/rYwtuDNCz0

— Herd w/Colin Cowherd (@TheHerd) March 12, 2024

@"CFIAvike" said:

@"Skodin" said: good move.  Can get you to the playoffs with a roster around him, also a good stopgap for a young QB.  Let KOC and Josh work with him.

Considering he’s never won more than 7 games while also seeing dead people…the answer is “no”

@"Skodin" said:

@"CFIAvike" said:

@"Skodin" said: good move.  Can get you to the playoffs with a roster around him, also a good stopgap for a young QB.  Let KOC and Josh work with him.

Considering he’s never won more than 7 games while also seeing dead people…the answer is “no”

You don't know that.   Good lord, he's not the QBOTF but on a team with top 5 offensive weapons and potentially a top 10 defense in a weak NFC, he could get you to the playoffs

If the team thought Darnold was good or had legitimate upside, they'd have brought him in to learn under Kirk last year instead of Dobbs, Mullens, whoever.
Could he pleasantly surprise all of us, including the team? Of course. Hope it happens, that'd be amazing.
But I refuse to believe Sam Darnold was Plan A, B, C, D, E, F, or G in KAM's mind at the start of last season. Maybe not even at the start of this week.
Sam's the guy we all sweat over until a rookie gets drafted and Sam becomes the backup. And that's fine. But expecting him to be more than that is getting a bit greedy IMO.

@"Skodin" said:

@"CFIAvike" said:

@"Skodin" said: good move.  Can get you to the playoffs with a roster around him, also a good stopgap for a young QB.  Let KOC and Josh work with him.

Considering he’s never won more than 7 games while also seeing dead people…the answer is “no”

You don't know that.   Good lord, he's not the QBOTF but on a team with top 5 offensive weapons and potentially a top 10 defense in a weak NFC, he could get you to the playoffs

@"StickyBun" said:

@"Havoc1649" said:

@"HappyViking" said:

@"StickyBun" said:

@"HappyViking" said: Are the other NFCN teams paying Kwesi's salary by any chance?  It almost seems intentional how he's making this roster crappier each off-season and void of any rational winning team plan.

Looks bleak right now, but you can see they are signing FAs. If they can hit on a QB in this Draft they like, its a plan that would be considered coming together. KAM needed some flexibility from the cap, that's what he worked toward each year....getting out of the cap hole. They'll have a shitload of cap room next year. They tried to resign Cousins.....are we going to blame KAM for not matching a 4 year contract with the guarantees Atlanta put in there? Not with a straight face.

I don't entirely blame KAM for not signing Cousins.  Actually, I now
hope Cousins falls flat on his dorky face in Atlanta.  The fact that KAM
doesn't have a reasonable succession plan for QB in year three of his
"rebuild" is his fault, however.  Did the Vikes believe Cousins when he
said he wanted to stay a Viking?  Seems like they did, but Kirk showed
them he only wanted to stay a Viking if they gave him the most
guaranteed money.I guess I blame Kwesi and Kirk equally. 
Kwesi has egg on his face (again) while "gosh, gee, golly good guy" Kirk is flipping him "the bird"
on his way to the Falcons.

The Vikes don't have a QB now, and everyone here knows they won't come close to playoffs without one.  They went from having the best NFCN QB to the worst in year 3 of Kwesi's rebuild.

Kirk Cousins, a guy with young kids, asked for something absolutely crazy and selfish to many Vikings fans. He asked for clarity and peace regarding the last years of his career. For some crazy reason, he didn’t want to wind up a journeyman QB having to constantly move around on one year contracts while his kids grow up. Yep, how selfish of him to not go along with Kwesi’s plan to dump him for a rookie contract as soon as possible. 

The Vikings could have easily matched the contract of the Falcons, but they would have actually committed to something and Kwesi didn’t want to. He probably saw it as too risky. So they parted ways. 

Kirk Cousins was a standup guy every second he was here. When he was treated like hot garbage by Zimmer despite performing well, he didn’t say a word. He just kept upholding his end of the deal with continuous great performances despite a horrendous line the front office couldn’t find a fix for. 

Cousins took LESS MONEY than his market value the past couple of years so the team could get better defense. That’s how he ended up paid 15th in the league despite being a top 5 performer. 

This team has been subpar because of poor drafting, not Kirk Cousins. Had they hit on even a few defenders in round 1-3 the past 6 years this was a top 5 team and competitive for a Superbowl. They hit on basically no one. Kirk Cousins didn’t do that. Kirk Cousins didn’t push dead money into this year. KAM did that. He didn’t sign free agencts and didn’t draft poorly. Cousins had zero control over this roster and why its been a struggle. He did everything he could on his end and did it well.

Kirk Cousins has done zip wrong. He’s still paid around 8th in the league - his market contract based upon his performance. The Vikings wouldn’t give him any stability and that was their choice, not Kirk’s. 

Dude. I loved Kirko. But he won 1 playoff game. Minnesota has JJ, Darrisaw, etc. up for big contracts. They need help on D. The organization rightly didn't want to sign a 36 year old coming off Achilles surgery to a 4 year contract loaded with guarantees. If you want to live in the fantasy land that they can afford everything and anything, I can't stop your delusion. 

I also think Kirk did zero wrong. But he shouldn't be a Viking for what Atlanta offered him. 

@"pattersaur" said:

@"mgobluevikes" said: Kwesi just put all his eggs in the basket of a rookie QB that he doesn't know he can get.

This should 100% be the biggest takeaway of the last 24 hours.
It could work out. It might not. But it's a highly unusual amount of risk to take at the QB position.

.@ColinCowherd cannot quit Sam Darnold... pic.twitter.com/rYwtuDNCz0

— Herd w/Colin Cowherd (@TheHerd) March 12, 2024

@"mgobluevikes" said:

@"Skodin" said:

@"CFIAvike" said:

@"Skodin" said: good move.  Can get you to the playoffs with a roster around him, also a good stopgap for a young QB.  Let KOC and Josh work with him.

Considering he’s never won more than 7 games while also seeing dead people…the answer is “no”

You don't know that.   Good lord, he's not the QBOTF but on a team with top 5 offensive weapons and potentially a top 10 defense in a weak NFC, he could get you to the playoffs

What team was he on again last year? hmmmm…

Cousins has the best agent in history, can't believe the deals he's signed. 

@"Zanary" said:

@"StickyBun" said:

@"Havoc1649" said:

@"HappyViking" said:

@"StickyBun" said:

@"HappyViking" said: Are the other NFCN teams paying Kwesi's salary by any chance?  It almost seems intentional how he's making this roster crappier each off-season and void of any rational winning team plan.

Looks bleak right now, but you can see they are signing FAs. If they can hit on a QB in this Draft they like, its a plan that would be considered coming together. KAM needed some flexibility from the cap, that's what he worked toward each year....getting out of the cap hole. They'll have a shitload of cap room next year. They tried to resign Cousins.....are we going to blame KAM for not matching a 4 year contract with the guarantees Atlanta put in there? Not with a straight face.

I don't entirely blame KAM for not signing Cousins.  Actually, I now
hope Cousins falls flat on his dorky face in Atlanta.  The fact that KAM
doesn't have a reasonable succession plan for QB in year three of his
"rebuild" is his fault, however.  Did the Vikes believe Cousins when he
said he wanted to stay a Viking?  Seems like they did, but Kirk showed
them he only wanted to stay a Viking if they gave him the most
guaranteed money.I guess I blame Kwesi and Kirk equally. 
Kwesi has egg on his face (again) while "gosh, gee, golly good guy" Kirk is flipping him "the bird"
on his way to the Falcons.

The Vikes don't have a QB now, and everyone here knows they won't come close to playoffs without one.  They went from having the best NFCN QB to the worst in year 3 of Kwesi's rebuild.

Kirk Cousins, a guy with young kids, asked for something absolutely crazy and selfish to many Vikings fans. He asked for clarity and peace regarding the last years of his career. For some crazy reason, he didn’t want to wind up a journeyman QB having to constantly move around on one year contracts while his kids grow up. Yep, how selfish of him to not go along with Kwesi’s plan to dump him for a rookie contract as soon as possible. 

The Vikings could have easily matched the contract of the Falcons, but they would have actually committed to something and Kwesi didn’t want to. He probably saw it as too risky. So they parted ways. 

Kirk Cousins was a standup guy every second he was here. When he was treated like hot garbage by Zimmer despite performing well, he didn’t say a word. He just kept upholding his end of the deal with continuous great performances despite a horrendous line the front office couldn’t find a fix for. 

Cousins took LESS MONEY than his market value the past couple of years so the team could get better defense. That’s how he ended up paid 15th in the league despite being a top 5 performer. 

This team has been subpar because of poor drafting, not Kirk Cousins. Had they hit on even a few defenders in round 1-3 the past 6 years this was a top 5 team and competitive for a Superbowl. They hit on basically no one. Kirk Cousins didn’t do that. Kirk Cousins didn’t push dead money into this year. KAM did that. He didn’t sign free agencts and didn’t draft poorly. Cousins had zero control over this roster and why its been a struggle. He did everything he could on his end and did it well.

Kirk Cousins has done zip wrong. He’s still paid around 8th in the league - his market contract based upon his performance. The Vikings wouldn’t give him any stability and that was their choice, not Kirk’s. 

Dude. I loved Kirko. But he won 1 playoff game. Minnesota has JJ, Darrisaw, etc. up for big contracts. They need help on D. The organization rightly didn't want to sign a 36 year old coming off Achilles surgery to a 4 year contract loaded with guarantees. If you want to live in the fantasy land that they can afford everything and anything, I can't stop your delusion. 

I also think Kirk did zero wrong. But he shouldn't be a Viking for what Atlanta offered him. 

"He won 1 playoff game"

He was notoriously horribly protected, while deep playoff teams tend to have top-5 lines (KC #5, Philly #1, etc). The TEAM failed to get the IOL shored up until...hell, half of last season.

As much as people talk about how good our D was rated in 2018, the team was obviously not right, overall, and Zimmer's defensive "brilliance" failed to create a single real starting CB after Rhodes. Waynes, Hughes, Dantzler...and let's not forget the complete dumpster fire of Breeland, who Zimmer insisted on starting as he lost us games.

After 2019, and that "one playoff win" which was followed by a trench humiliation at the hands of SF, our defense would be rated in the 30s for 3 straight seasons while our IOL was still barely rated better.  How does that TEAM go for championships?

This is why I'm sad to see Cousins go, but almost relieved for him: the absolute babbling BS that HE failed to win more playoff games when the team, the coaching, and other areas were still needing addressing as well...it's just been a special kind of disgusting. After years and years of fragile/weak QBs, we get one that genuinely produces at a high level and many fans forget 52 other players plus the coaches.

@"StickyBun" said:

@"Zanary" said:

@"StickyBun" said:

@"Havoc1649" said:

@"HappyViking" said:

@"StickyBun" said:

@"HappyViking" said: Are the other NFCN teams paying Kwesi's salary by any chance?  It almost seems intentional how he's making this roster crappier each off-season and void of any rational winning team plan.

Looks bleak right now, but you can see they are signing FAs. If they can hit on a QB in this Draft they like, its a plan that would be considered coming together. KAM needed some flexibility from the cap, that's what he worked toward each year....getting out of the cap hole. They'll have a shitload of cap room next year. They tried to resign Cousins.....are we going to blame KAM for not matching a 4 year contract with the guarantees Atlanta put in there? Not with a straight face.

I don't entirely blame KAM for not signing Cousins.  Actually, I now
hope Cousins falls flat on his dorky face in Atlanta.  The fact that KAM
doesn't have a reasonable succession plan for QB in year three of his
"rebuild" is his fault, however.  Did the Vikes believe Cousins when he
said he wanted to stay a Viking?  Seems like they did, but Kirk showed
them he only wanted to stay a Viking if they gave him the most
guaranteed money.I guess I blame Kwesi and Kirk equally. 
Kwesi has egg on his face (again) while "gosh, gee, golly good guy" Kirk is flipping him "the bird"
on his way to the Falcons.

The Vikes don't have a QB now, and everyone here knows they won't come close to playoffs without one.  They went from having the best NFCN QB to the worst in year 3 of Kwesi's rebuild.

Kirk Cousins, a guy with young kids, asked for something absolutely crazy and selfish to many Vikings fans. He asked for clarity and peace regarding the last years of his career. For some crazy reason, he didn’t want to wind up a journeyman QB having to constantly move around on one year contracts while his kids grow up. Yep, how selfish of him to not go along with Kwesi’s plan to dump him for a rookie contract as soon as possible. 

The Vikings could have easily matched the contract of the Falcons, but they would have actually committed to something and Kwesi didn’t want to. He probably saw it as too risky. So they parted ways. 

Kirk Cousins was a standup guy every second he was here. When he was treated like hot garbage by Zimmer despite performing well, he didn’t say a word. He just kept upholding his end of the deal with continuous great performances despite a horrendous line the front office couldn’t find a fix for. 

Cousins took LESS MONEY than his market value the past couple of years so the team could get better defense. That’s how he ended up paid 15th in the league despite being a top 5 performer. 

This team has been subpar because of poor drafting, not Kirk Cousins. Had they hit on even a few defenders in round 1-3 the past 6 years this was a top 5 team and competitive for a Superbowl. They hit on basically no one. Kirk Cousins didn’t do that. Kirk Cousins didn’t push dead money into this year. KAM did that. He didn’t sign free agencts and didn’t draft poorly. Cousins had zero control over this roster and why its been a struggle. He did everything he could on his end and did it well.

Kirk Cousins has done zip wrong. He’s still paid around 8th in the league - his market contract based upon his performance. The Vikings wouldn’t give him any stability and that was their choice, not Kirk’s. 

Dude. I loved Kirko. But he won 1 playoff game. Minnesota has JJ, Darrisaw, etc. up for big contracts. They need help on D. The organization rightly didn't want to sign a 36 year old coming off Achilles surgery to a 4 year contract loaded with guarantees. If you want to live in the fantasy land that they can afford everything and anything, I can't stop your delusion. 

I also think Kirk did zero wrong. But he shouldn't be a Viking for what Atlanta offered him. 

"He won 1 playoff game"

He was notoriously horribly protected, while deep playoff teams tend to have top-5 lines (KC #5, Philly #1, etc). The TEAM failed to get the IOL shored up until...hell, half of last season.

As much as people talk about how good our D was rated in 2018, the team was obviously not right, overall, and Zimmer's defensive "brilliance" failed to create a single real starting CB after Rhodes. Waynes, Hughes, Dantzler...and let's not forget the complete dumpster fire of Breeland, who Zimmer insisted on starting as he lost us games.

After 2019, and that "one playoff win" which was followed by a trench humiliation at the hands of SF, our defense would be rated in the 30s for 3 straight seasons while our IOL was still barely rated better.  How does that TEAM go for championships?

This is why I'm sad to see Cousins go, but almost relieved for him: the absolute babbling BS that HE failed to win more playoff games when the team, the coaching, and other areas were still needing addressing as well...it's just been a special kind of disgusting. After years and years of fragile/weak QBs, we get one that genuinely produces at a high level and many fans forget 52 other players plus the coaches.

And after all your outrage and blather.....he's still won one playoff game in Minnesota. This is the last time I'm going to mention how much I'm a fan of Kirko Chainz. I wanted him back and I've defended him constantly on this board in the past. 

You're relieved for him?? lol, yeah the poor guy was so persecuted in Minnesota (eye roll). He was beloved on the team and got one of the loudest ovations ever blowing the Gjallarhorn last season. Save your melodrama and tears for Kirko, he's fine. I'll be rooting for him in Atlanta. 

I had a deep conversation with a friend who played for USC and is a big Trojans fan.  He said that at USC, Sam Darnold was big, athletic, did not get flustered, good arm, mentally strong.  All positives that should have translated to success in the NFL.  However, his growth got stunted at the Jets and then again at Carolina.  I may have judged this move prematurely.  

@"Montana Tom" said: I had a deep conversation with a friend who played for USC and is a big Trojans fan.  He said that at USC, Sam Darnold was big, athletic, did not get flustered, good arm, mentally strong.  All positives that should have translated to success in the NFL.  However, his growth got stunted at the Jets and then again at Carolina.  I may have judged this move prematurely.  

Hey, I'll be hoping that's the case this September...! I love a good underdog story as much as anyone, and kinda wanted Mayfield for us during all the "Cousins imminently trading to SF" blather over the last few seasons. If Darnold can prove to be a good QB that just needed the right team, everybody wins.

@"Montana Tom" said: I had a deep conversation with a friend who played for USC and is a big Trojans fan.  He said that at USC, Sam Darnold was big, athletic, did not get flustered, good arm, mentally strong.  All positives that should have translated to success in the NFL.  However, his growth got stunted at the Jets and then again at Carolina.  I may have judged this move prematurely.  

Having said that......the odds are overwhelming that he'll be the same Sam Darnold he's been as a pro. The early bad programming for a rookie QB in a bad franchise situation is almost impossible to overcome. We'll see what kind of whisperer KOC and McCown can be. They have some very good physical tools to work with.

I haven't really followed Darnold much, and I'm certainly not expecting him to be our starting QB all year, but he's got some arm and leg talent. 

New Vikings QB, Sam Darnold pic.twitter.com/0PQu34JofM

— vikesinsider (@vikesinsider) March 12, 2024