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In the NFL this season, the biggest feel-good story may be that of quarterback Sam Darnold.
After he had a fine college career at the University of Southern California, he was the No. 3 pick in the 2018 NFL Draft by the New York Jets, but after three dismal seasons with them, he was dismissed as a bust by many.
But a few felt he could be successful if he just had the right players and infrastructure around him, and that is exactly what he has had with the Minnesota Vikings this year.
All of a sudden, Darnold started playing like a star, and as a result, the 14-2 Vikings are in position to not only finish first in the NFC North but possibly claim the top seed in the conference.
In fact, podcaster John Middlekauff boldly said that Darnold is a better quarterback than Jalen Hurts of the Philadelphia Eagles.
.@johnmiddlekauff believes Sam Darnold is one of the best quarterbacks in the NFC, and is currently better than Jalen Hurts pic.twitter.com/L0Z87ahx68
— 3&OUT with John Middlekauff (@3andout_pod) December 30, 2024
Hurts has thrown for 2,903 yards and 18 touchdowns against just five interceptions while running for 630 yards and 14 touchdowns, so saying Darnold is better than him is saying a lot, especially since Hurts was the runner-up in the MVP balloting two years ago.
Darnold has collected 4,153 passing yards and 35 passing touchdowns while limiting himself to 12 interceptions and completing 68.1 percent of his pass attempts, and he has maintained his excellent play throughout the season.
However, Minnesota will have a big decision to make this offseason — Darnold will be a free agent, and they have a young quarterback in J.J. McCarthy who they believe could be very good in his own right in the years to come.
They signed Darnold to a one-year, $10 million deal this past offseason after Kirk Cousins left to join the Atlanta Falcons.
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