Minnesota Vikings quarterback Sam Darnold was able to do enough to help the team eke out a victory over the Seattle Seahawks on Sunday, 27-24.
It was a game both teams needed to win to keep pace in their respective division title races. Minnesota needed to match the Detroit Lions after they won earlier in the day and Seattle needed to win to match the Los Angeles Rams after they also won earlier in the day.
Seahawks veteran quarterback Geno Smith found A.J. Barner for a 4-yard touchdown pass to take the lead with 4:21 left. It was an 11-play drive that lasted more than six minutes.
Darnold responded. In just four plays, Darnold somehow found Justin Jefferson with two Seahawks defenders around him and snuck the ball through the tightest of windows. Jefferson caught it and ran into the end zone for a touchdown.
The 39-yard touchdown pass put the Vikings back up three points.
Seattle had a chance to tie the game. Jason Myers received an opportunity to give Seattle three points late with a 60-yard field goal try. But he was just a few yards short of making it and the Seahawks lost.
Darnold was 22-of-35 with 246 passing yards and three touchdown passes. Jefferson had two of those three touchdown passes and Jordan Addison had the other. Jefferson finished with 10 catches for 144 yards and Addison had five catches for 35 yards.
Smith was as remarkable as he could be. He finished 31-of-43 passing for 314 yards and three touchdown passes. Jaxon Smith-Njigba and DK Metcalf had the other touchdown passes.
Minnesota improved to 13-2 on the season. Seattle fell to 8-7.
The Minnesota Vikings made quick work of Caleb Williams and the Chicago Bears on Monday night and extended their winning streak to seven games to get into a tie for first in the division.
The Vikings defense sacked Caleb Williams twice and held them to only one 3rd down conversion on 11 drives as they won the game, 30-12.
Randy Moss was on the mind of the Vikings faithful throughout the night. Cris Carter and Jake Reed led tributes to the Pro Football Hall of Famer after he revealed a cancer diagnosis last week. It was only fitting that Justin Jefferson send a get well soon message to Moss early in the game.
Jefferson caught his eighth touchdown pass of the season. It was a 7-yard grab from Sam Darnold. He finished with seven catches for 73 yards.
Darnold was 24-of-40 for 231 yards, a touchdown pass and an interception.
Minnesota had it going in the ground game. Aaron Jones ran for 86 yards and a touchdown and Cam Akers had 24 yards and a touchdown.
Miscues and defensive pressure were the story of the night.
The Bears had a legitimate chance to get back into the game in the third quarter. Bears running back D’Andre Swift ran for what was thought to be a touchdown but it was nullified after offensive lineman Doug Kramer failed to report in with officials before the snap.
Two plays later, a holding call moved the Bears from the 1-yard line to the 11-yard line. Williams threw two consecutive incompletions and the Bears were forced to kick a field goal.
The momentum stopped there. Chicago only got two 12 points thanks to a late touchdown pass from Williams to Keenan Allen. But there was not much offense from there.
Williams was 18-of-31 with 191 passing yards. Allen had six catches for 82 yards.
Minnesota moved to 12-2 on the season, wrapping up its second 12-win season in the last three years.
Chicago fell to 4-10 with its sights set on an offseason of moving and shaking.
When Kirk Cousins walked in free agency to the Atlanta Falcons, the Minnesota Vikings' future at the quarterback position was a giant question mark.
How would Kevin O'Connell's high-octane passing offense work if there wasn't a solid signal caller to lead the way? Well, they drafted a potential franchise quarterback in J.J. McCarthy out of Michigan in the first round of the 2024 NFL Draft, and brought in veteran Sam Darnold as competition in training camp.
It was thought when camp began that McCarthy would win the job, but even before suffering a knee injury that ended his rookie campaign before it started, O'Connell chose Darnold as his Week 1 starter.
The decision was one that not only boosted the Vikings' playoff hopes, but rejuvenated Darnold's NFL career.
Through 13 games this season, the Vikings are 11-2, a position not many believed they would be in with Darnold at the helm all season long due to McCarthy's injury. However, he quickly showed the football world why the New York Jets took him third overall out of USC in 2018 – he's a straight baller that's in the right scheme.
But one Vikings legend presents a harsh reality for those fans hoping Darnold will return after this season (he's only a one-year deal).
"I think it’s going to be really tough, and the reason why I think it’s going to be really tough is Sam’s earned himself a legitimate quarterback contract in this league," Vikings great tight end Kyle Rudolph told Fox News Digital while also touching on his surprise to two Minnesota military veterans after teaming up with Polaris and Call of Duty in Week 13.
Rudolph is with other Vikings fans that believe Darnold should be back, but the reality is he’s earned a lucrative deal through these 13 games and the stats prove it.
Darnold is sixth in the NFL in passing yards (3,299), tied third in passing touchdowns (28), seventh in completion percentage (68.4%) and third in quarterback rating (108.1). He’s proving he can be an elite quarterback in the right system, but are the Vikings willing to shell out $40 million-plus per season?
Rudolph likened the situation to Baker Mayfield and the Tampa Bay Buccaneers, as he earned himself a three-year deal worth $100 million this past offseason after leading them to the playoffs in 2023.
The difference between Tampa Bay and Minnesota is the former didn't have a high draft pick spent on a quarterback when the season began.
"If you’re Sam Darnold, you came to Minnesota and played your one-year, $10 million contract. You now deserve that big deal," Rudolph said. "I don’t think it’s in the Vikings’ best interest when you look at the rest of their roster. They can’t afford to go out and spend $40 million on a quarterback. That’s why Kirk [Cousins] is in Atlanta right now and not the starting quarterback of the Minnesota Vikings.
"Unfortunately, it’s a part of the game that’s tough, and you got to make decisions based on the salary cap and you’re paying a receiver $35 million. It’s really hard to pay the best receiver in football, who deserves every dime he’s got, and then turn around and pay a quarterback $40-plus million a year."
That receiver is Justin Jefferson, who is now the highest-paid hideout in the NFL after receiving his extension worth $35 million over the next five seasons. Darnold has developed quite the rapport with Jefferson through 13 games, as he has with Jordan Addison, T.J. Hockenson and Aaron Jones, the other weapons on offense.
Darnold is comfortable, poised and a true leader on game day, which is everything you want in a quarterback. But, as you’ve likely heard many times, this is a business, and Darnold has made the decision very tough for Minnesota moving forward.
Until that decision is made, Rudolph will continue rooting for Darnold, who has bounced around the Jets, Carolina Panthers and San Francisco 49ers until he finally found a home where he can thrive.
Perhaps it’s where he ultimately wants to stay, but will the contract match his worth?
GIVING BACK TO VETERANS
Rudolph got to watch Darnold & Co. collect their Week 13 win over the Arizona Cardinals in the Twin Cities, where he also surprised two Minnesota veterans with Polaris RZR Pro R vehicles during the Dec. 1 Salute to Service Game.
Rudolph, leveraging his fundraising platform Altroo, teamed up with Polaris and Call of Duty for this special surprise.
"Two Minnesota native Marine Corps gentlemen, they almost felt like they were undeserving of such an incredible honor because they’re like, ‘There’s so many others who have done what I’ve done and deserve it more than I do.’ They couldn’t believe that they were the two who were chosen to receive these Polaris RZRs," Rudolph said.
The veterans also played the brand-new Call of Duty Black Ops 6 game with Vikings defenders Pat Jones II and Ivan Pace Jr.
And through March 1, 2025, Rudolph pointed out that football fans can enter at Altroo for a chance to win a Polaris RZR Pro R through donations that benefit the Call of Duty Endowment, a program that helps place veterans in high-quality careers and supports veteran well-being.
Kirk Cousins may have been back at U.S. Bank Stadium, the place he called home with the Minnesota Vikings for six seasons, but his Atlanta Falcons were no match for his replacement at quarterback.
Sam Darnold threw five touchdown passes and over 300 yards to thrash the Falcons, 42-21, to move the Vikings to 11-2 on the season.
Darnold was 22-of-28 for 347 yards with his five scores, while Cousins, though he threw for 344 yards, had no touchdowns and two interceptions.
Cousins has been struggling with turnovers in recent weeks, as he had four interceptions last week in the loss to the Los Angeles Chargers and had one in each of the previous two games.
But this game began with a master class from the Falcons, going 11 plays and 70 yards to see Tyler Allgeier score the game’s first touchdown.
However, a turnover-on-downs on the second Falcons drive ultimately flipped the momentum as Darnold’s first touchdown pass was a broken play to Jordan Addison, who scored three of those five touchdowns, as he caught a 49-yard bomb and walked into the end zone to tie the game after the extra point.
A few drives later, Darnold zipped a pass to Justin Jefferson for a 12-yard score – his first since Week 7, which seems crazy to think about considering he’s the team’s top receiver.
But Darnold wouldn’t just find Jefferson once. Yet another broken play came, this time in the second half, where he walked in as well from 52 yards out.
Addison led the game with 133 receiving yards on eight receptions, but Jefferson was right behind with 132 yards on seven catches.
The Vikings put the game away in the fourth quarter, as they outscored the Falcons 21-0, which included an Aaron Jones touchdown. Jones had 73 yards on 13 carries on the day.
For the Falcons, Bijan Robinson was able to find the end zone as well as leading the game with 92 rushing yards on 22 carries.
Darnell Mooney was Cousins’ top target with 142 yards on just six catches, while Ray-Ray McCloud had 98 yards on eight receptions.
Sam Darnold has become the unlikely star of the 2024 season as the Minnesota Vikings notched their third 10-win season in six years with a close victory over the Arizona Cardinals.
Darnold, a castoff quarterback who was likely set to be a backup at some point over the year to J.J. McCarthy before the rookie was injured, staked his claim on Sunday as the man to beat for Comeback Player of the Year.
He took the Vikings down the field on an eight-play, 70-yard drive that ended with a 5-yard touchdown pass to Aaron Jones. Minnesota took the lead 23-22 with 1:13 left in the game and won by the same score.
Darnold was 21-of-31 with 235 passing yards and two touchdown passes. The pass to Jones solidified the biggest comeback of Darnold’s career. The other touchdown pass went to Johnny Mundt.
"There's no other place I'd rather play; just so grateful to be a Viking," the veteran quarterback told FOX’s Pam Oliver after the game.
Darnold was a backup to Brock Purdy with the San Francisco 49ers last year and is on the verge of getting Minnesota back to the playoffs.
Minnesota cornerback Shaquil Griffin picked off Cardinals quarterback Kyler Murray to end the game.
Murray’s touchdown pass to Marvin Harrison Jr. put Arizona up 19-6 with 4:37 left in the third quarter. Darnold answered with his touchdown pass to Mundt on the next drive.
Murray was 31-of-45 with 260 passing yards, a touchdown pass and two interceptions. The other interception was thrown to Byron Murphy Jr.
Cardinals tight end Trey McBride led the team with 12 catches for 96 yards. Harrison had five catches for 60 yards.
The Minnesota Vikings won a thriller at Soldier Field on Sunday in a game they were so close to choking away.
The Vikings led by two touchdowns in the fourth quarter but needed an overtime field goal to beat the Chicago Bears, 30-27.
With 22 seconds left and trailing by 11, Caleb Williams hit Keenan Allen for a one-yard score, and the two-point conversion was successful when Williams found DJ Moore.
The Bears then recovered the onside kick, just the third onside recovery on the season in the NFL. They quickly got in field goal range after a long catch by Moore and drilled the field goal to send the game into overtime. They outscored the Vikings 17-3 in the fourth quarter.
The Bears went three-and-out on the first overtime possession, and that turned out to be the last time they would touch the ball on the day.
Justin Jefferson had just one catch in regulation, but his second of the game put Minnesota at midfield. A few plays later, Sam Darnold found T.J. Hockenson for a gain of 29 to get them inside the 10-yard line. After Darnold took a knee in the middle of the hashmarks, John Parker Romo drilled the chip shot to give Minnesota the win.
It was the best day the Bears' offense has had in a while after they'd failed to score 20 points in each of their previous four games and lost each of them. But apparently, 27 isn't enough.
Darnold went 22-for-34 for 330 yards and two touchdowns. Jordan Addison went off for eight catches and 162 yards and one of the scores. Aaron Jones also added 106 yards on the ground and another touchdown.
Caleb Williams threw for 340 yards in the losing effort, while Moore had seven catches for 106 yards and a touchdown. Allen added nine catches for 86 yards and the fourth quarter score.
Minnesota improved to 9-2 on the season. They've now won four in a row after two consecutive losses that came immediately after their 5-0 start. The Bears have lost five straight and are 4-7.
