EAGAN, Minn. — When J.J. McCarthy suffered a season-ending knee injury during the 2024 NFL preseason, Sam Darnold went from probable to confirmed starter as the Minnesota Vikings‘ new quarterback. Just don’t expect to see the Darnold of yesteryear, according to the veteran’s teammates, who insist the former top-three draft pick is a changed man since early in his NFL career.
“He’s a lot more comfortable,” linebacker Andrew Van Ginkel told CBS Sports on Monday. “He’s got a lot more playmakers now than he did with the [New York] Jets. You can tell he’s a vet. He’s been in this league for a while. He understands who he is, how he can manipulate defenses or get the ball to his playmakers in space.”
Van Ginkel should know: He saw Darnold firsthand while playing for the Miami Dolphins from 2019-2023, a span in which Darnold appeared as the quarterback of the rival Jets. Drafted No. 3 overall out of USC back in 2018, Darnold lasted just three seasons in New York, going 13-25 as an injury- and turnover-riddled starter before his trade to the Carolina Panthers in 2021.
Three years later, coming off a one-season stint learning under Kyle Shanahan as Brock Purdy’s backup with the San Francisco 49ers, Darnold has won over other big names in Minnesota’s locker room, including star wide receiver Justin Jefferson, in a single offseason replacing the departed Kirk Cousins.
“To see his growth, his maturity, how far he’s come as a pro,” Van Ginkel said, “is unmatched.”
The 27-year-old Darnold is set to open the regular season as the Vikings’ first-team signal-caller on Sept. 8, in the same MetLife Stadium that he called home to start his career.
