The Las Vegas Raiders are going to be in the quarterback market this offseason. It doesn’t appear they’ll pursue Russell Wilson despite his previous ties to head coach Pete Carroll.
With the Raiders hiring Chip Kelly as offensive coordinator, the team could prefer addressing the position in the draft considering his college background. However, Carroll seems set on building a winner quickly and may not want a rookie or an underwhelming veteran to lead the offense.
That could lead them to take a look at Minnesota Vikings quarterback Sam Darnold. He’s set to hit free agency and it’s unclear if he’ll return to Minnesota. If not, Marcus Mosher of The 33rd Team believes the Raiders should offer the quarterback a three-year, $124 million contract.
“Picking at No. 6, it seems unlikely that the Las Vegas Raiders will land Cam Ward or Shedeur Sanders,” Mosher wrote in a Feb. 4 column. “However. with Pete Carroll signed on as the next head coach, it sure doesn’t feel like he’ll want to develop a quarterback anyway. Sam Darnold is coming off the best season of his career and is only 27.
“The Raiders will need to surround him with top-end talent as the Vikings did, but that shouldn’t be too hard with Brock Bowers and Jakobi Meyers already on the roster. Darnold isn’t the perfect solution for Las Vegas, but he gives them a respectable quarterback in a division with Patrick Mahomes, Justin Herbert, and Bo Nix.”
Is Sam Darnold Worth That Much Money?
Darnold was excellent in 2024. He threw for 35 touchdowns and led the Vikings to 14 wins. He was one of the best quarterbacks in the NFL for most of the season.
However, he saved his two worst games for the two most important games. He struggled in Week 18 against the Detroit Lions with the No. 1 seed in the NFC on the line and then played poorly in the playoffs against the Los Angeles Rams.
It remains to be seen if he can be a quarterback to get a team to a Super Bowl. $41.3 million a year for a quarterback with question marks might be too steep a price to pay. Darnold at $30 million a year would be much more interesting for a team like the Raiders.
Kevin O’Connell Hinted at Darnold’s Return
It’s possible that Darnold won’t even be available as Vikings head coach Kevin O’Connell hinted that the quarterback will be back next season at the NFL Honors. However, he did walk those comments back later.
“I don’t necessarily think that was 100% accurate,” O’Connell told reporters Thursday night. “It was in the spirit about answering a question about (Darnold’s) season, and what he was able to do this year. And then the follow-up in regards to what it’s going to take to win a championship. Look, you guys know how I feel about (Darnold).
“He is a guy who we identified last year as someone who could come in and be successful, and really no matter where he was before he arrived, it was about maximizing our time together. And I think we did that. I think it was a very special year for (Darnold), and what that earned him is that everybody in our league thinks that he’s a bonafide, legitimate starting quarterback in our league and can win a lot of football games. He won 14 of them, so he’s earned the right to be a free agent.”
It sounds like there’s a chance Darnold stays in Minnesota but the Vikings could allow him to test the market.
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