The Vikings will decide by 3 p.m. Tuesday whether to place the franchise tag on quarterback Sam Darnold, either for the purpose of bringing him back for the 2025 season or possibly trading him for draft picks in the coming weeks.
Vikings reach deadline for making a decision about QB Sam Darnold today
The Vikings have until 3 p.m. to decide whether to use the franchise tag to keep Darnold or trade him. The move seems unlikely. Here’s why.
The Minnesota Star Tribune
March 4, 2025 at 4:30PM
The latter scenario is enticing, and certainly one the team has considered. But it’s unlikely because, as sources said at the NFL combine in Indianapolis last week, it comes with its own risks.
One NFC executive, who thought the tag-and-trade was unlikely, pointed out tagging Darnold effectively gives him a no-trade clause, since a new team would want to know whether the quarterback would sign a long-term deal with them before making the trade. It’s possible the Vikings could bring Darnold back on a more team-friendly deal, but since he is viewed as the top free-agent QB in a year with a weak draft class, it seems more likely he’d find a long-term suitor elsewhere. And if they were going to pull off the tag-and-trade scenario, they’d likely want to know they have a deal in place before tagging Darnold.
Here are a few other excerpts from the Access Vikings newsletter, which was originally emailed to subscribers on Friday. You can sign up for the free newsletter here.
• Another NFC coach at the combine thought Daniel Jones might actually be a more likely Week 1 starter for the Vikings than Darnold, if the team wanted to give J.J. McCarthy more time before taking over the job. That scenario would require the Vikings to sign Jones to a new deal in free agency, but unless he finds a clear opportunity to start for another team, he could return to Minnesota on a one-year deal similar to what Darnold did last year. It would give the Vikings more control of the timetable with McCarthy, who is still just 22, and could offer Jones a fuller chance to rehabilitate his career before resuming the pursuit of a long-term deal next year at age 28. Vikings General Manager Kwesi Adofo-Mensah last week called Jones “a great option for us.” When adding Jones to the practice squad in November, the Vikings seemed to have an eye toward 2025; they could make him their veteran counterpart to McCarthy if Darnold leaves.
• Sources said coach Kevin O’Connell’s new contract runs through 2029; now that the deal is done, the Vikings will likely turn their attention to new contracts for their coordinators. Both offensive coordinator Wes Phillips and defensive coordinator Brian Flores have contracts expiring after 2025, and could be in line for pay bumps this spring as O’Connell seeks to reward his staff. O’Connell’s deal puts him a year beyond the end of Justin Jefferson’s contract, and a year past McCarthy’s fifth-year option.
• Now that assistant quarterbacks coach Grant Udinski is the Jaguars' new offensive coordinator, the Vikings hired former Saints assistant Jordan Traylor to replace him, a source confirmed Monday night. Udinski had grown particularly close with McCarthy; Traylor figures to work closely with him this year, supporting the coaching McCarthy will get from O’Connell, Phillips and quarterbacks coach Josh McCown. McCown, who interviewed for the Jets’ head coach job this year, could be a strong coaching candidate in future years; Traylor could have the chance to move into a larger role if McCown eventually leaves for a promotion.
• The Vikings pushed back the void date on Byron Murphy Jr.’s contract to March 11, and re-signing the cornerback is a high priority for them. For Murphy to be one of the league’s 10 highest-paid corners, he’d have to average more than $19 million per year on a new deal. But the Vikings seem eager to bring the 27-year-old back after a Pro Bowl season in which he intercepted six passes.
• Both lines of scrimmage seem like priorities for the Vikings this offseason: They’ve met with a number of defensive tackles from a deep rookie class, including Oregon’s Derrick Harmon (who could be a first-round target for them). The Vikings haven’t taken a defensive tackle in the first round since Sharrif Floyd in 2013; they’d like to upgrade their interior pass rush in hopes of getting more pressure without blitzing in 2025. While both Andrew Krammer and I heard last week that Commanders defensive tackle Jonathan Allen’s Minneapolis-based agency is interested in him being traded to the Vikings, it remains to be seen if Minnesota would trade for a 30-year-old tackle in the final year of a deal that will pay him $17 million this season.
Podcast: What we learned at the NFL combine
• While Chiefs guard Trey Smith might no longer be an option for the Vikings after Kansas City placed the franchise tag on him Thursday, I continue to believe they’ll push for upgrades at the position in free agency. The Draft Network reported Thursday the Vikings had a formal visit with Cincinnati interior offensive lineman Luke Kandra.
• One final note on Adofo-Mensah’s contract: While negotiations continue on a new deal for the GM (whose contract expires after 2025), I don’t get the sense that there’s any alarm over the fact negotiations haven’t led to an agreement yet. Adofo-Mensah has been patient in extension talks with players like Jefferson; my sense is he’s taking a similar approach to his own deal, waiting for terms that work for both sides rather than rushing to get something done just to have it squared away. Everyone I’ve talked to about the deal expects it will get done; if there’s nothing finalized by April, there could be more cause for concern, but I don’t think we’re there yet.
In the next Access Vikings newsletter, we’ll preview free agency by taking a look at the team’s financial situation, which is in markedly different shape than it’s been in almost a decade. Subscribe here to get the newsletter sent to your inbox on Friday.
A franchise tag for quarterback Sam Darnold would have cost the Vikings $40.24 million for 2025. While they could still agree to a new contract with him, they are facing the prospect of having a new starting QB for the third consecutive year.
