Signs Point To Vikings Using Franchise Tag On Sam Darnold

Signs Point To Vikings Using Franchise Tag On Sam Darnold

Can we just have a quick chat? I don’t really understand the dialogue around Sam Darnold right now. There is only one avenue the Vikings should take with Darnold. Use the franchise tag and run this thing back next year.

It would see that the Vikings front office wisely sees things that way.

Washington Post’s Jason La Canfora (Do not click the link. It’s behind a paywall. I’ll give you the spark notes.) is reporting that JJ McCarthy isn’t healthy right now. The former Michigan product has “significant” work to do to get back on the field. Because of that, Minnesota probably won’t let Darnold walk.

We don’t have the official franchise tag numbers yet but it’s going to be around $40 million. The Vikings enter the offseason with around $59 million in cap space. They really don’t have many impending free agents beyond Darnold. It’s mostly just cornerback Byron Murphy and running back Aaron Jones. They should have no problem bringing those guys back even if they do tag Darnold.

If McCarthy isn’t healthy, this is a no-brainer. You bring Darnold back and see how it goes this upcoming year. Any other path is the wrong path. The willingness to just let Darnold walk after throwing for 35 touchdowns and winning 14 games is incredibly stupid. By the way, there is always a chance someone calls the Vikings and offers them a package of picks they can’t say no to after they use the tag. Have you seen the other available quarterbacks on the open market?

There also isn’t anything wrong with letting McCarthy develop another year. If anything, it’s probably the correct approach to take with the former Michigan quarterback.

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