It’s not a great year to be needing a quarterback.
With serious questions about every incoming rookie signal caller not named Cam Ward, and at least a half-dozen quarterback-desperate teams with money to spend in free agency with few proven starters among the veterans available, several teams are going to be settling for a bridge option to next year’s rookie class.
However, hitting free agency after becoming a Pro Bowler for the first time, Sam Darnold is potentially the most coveted free agent quarterback available, at the top of this market, and could be set to cash in.
“He will be at the top of teams QB options in free agency,” a veteran NFC Personnel Executive tells me, on the condition of anonymity to speak freely. “Quarterback-needy teams who realistically can’t check that box via the draft (and that sequence will vary from team to team) and will likely see Sam as their best option.”
The veteran personnel man believes Darnold could fetch upwards of $40 million when free agency begins.
Not everyone, though is convinced that Sam Darnold is a wise investment.
NFL Analyst Cautions Against Massive Sam Darnold Deal
ESPN’s Seth Walder put together a list of the most overrated free agents about to hit the market, with Darnold atop the list among quarterbacks.
“The consensus view of Darnold heading into the 2024 season,” Walder writes for ESPN. “Was he was in the backup/bridge quarterback range, with potential below-average starter upside. We should update our beliefs based on new information, so I certainly view Darnold more favorably now than I did 12 months ago. But given that his numbers were more middling than great, despite the favorable circumstances around him, I think Darnold is a below-average starter. That’s not the type of player to whom I want to give a big multiyear guarantee.”
Through the first 14 weeks of the season, Darnold was on track to a massive pay day and perhaps long-term security.
However, after a pair of disappointing losses to close out the 2024 campaign–in Week 18 to the Detriot Lions and in the NFC Wild Card round against the Los Angeles Rams, where the pressure seemed to get to Darnold and he struggled mightily in his team’s biggest games, he may be relegated to a shorter-term deal and need to prove himself once again in 2025.
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