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With Sam Darnold in the Super Bowl, the topic of the Minnesota Vikings allowing him to leave has been front and center on mainstream sports media shows. The Vikings’ decision to fire Kwesi Adofo-Mensah as their general manager, with the Darnold decision being one factor.
However, ESPN’s Stephen A. Smith Adofo-Mensah shouldn’t be the only one receiving blame for the decision to let Darnold leave Minnesota and commit to J.J. McCarthy.
“What has me suspicious right now monitoring the Minnesota Vikings is now that Adofo’s gone as your GM, as your man calling the shots, right now we’re hearing, well, it really wouldn’t have anything to do with Kevin O’Connell, he really didn’t want to lose Sam Darnold,” Smith said on the Feb. 2 edition of “First Take.” “That really wasn’t his decision. BS.
“I don’t want to hear that. The quarterback whisperer had established himself as one of the bright young coaches in football. There is no way in hell he didn’t have a say as to Sam Darnold walking out that building. I don’t believe it… How the hell do you not have any say over Sam Darnold staying on board as your quarterback? Somehow, someway you convince them, ‘Oh man, I’ll make J.J. McCarthy work. I’ll make it work. Ain’t no big deal.’“
Were the Vikings Arrogant With Letting Sam Darnold Walk?
Moreover, former NFL offensive lineman Damien Woody stated that O’Connell’s reputation for getting the most out of QBs likely led to an arrogant stance that he could develop McCarthy into a starting signal-caller.
“I do think there was a level of arrogance because we do call Kevin O’Connell like the quarterback whisperer,“ Woody added during that same segment. “He’s done a hell of a job, and I still think he’s one of the brightest minds that we do have in our game. I’ve always said you don’t let good quarterbacks walk out the building. You just don’t.
“You can say whatever you want about Sam Darnold at the end of the year. And listen, he finished the year bad, but his body of work should have told you, hey, let’s wind it back. Let’s go back. Let’s do it again one more year—just to see.”
McCarthy had a passer rating of 72.6 with 1,632 yards, 11 touchdowns and 12 interceptions in 10 games in 2025, per StatMuse. As a result, it will be interesting to see whether the Vikings actually stick with McCarthy.
Sam Darnold Played a Major Role in Minnesota’s Decision
Meanwhile, ESPN NFL analyst Mina Kimes questions the influence that Sam Darnold’s Super Bowl run with the Seattle Seahawks had on the decision to fire Adofo-Mensah, given that the Vikings’ season ended a couple of weeks ago and they held their end-of-season meetings.
“I’m surprised, not surprised by the decision, but surprised by the timing,“ Kimes said on the Jan. 30 edition of “NFL Live.“ “That’s what’s shocking here, right? Because Viking season ended weeks ago. They had their meetings back then, sent him to the Senior Bowl. Apparently, the timing makes me think this is reactive to Sam Darnold being in the Super Bowl. It’s hard not to feel that way. Now, as far as whether that’s fair, I don’t think that’s fair.”
Eduardo Razo Eduardo Razo is a sports writer for Heavy.com, covering the NFL, MLB, and college football. He has previously covered the NFL, NBA, NHL, and MLB for NBC Sports Washington and NBC Sports Bay Area & California, and has freelanced for PSG Talk, covering Paris Saint-Germain. He also worked as an editor at Athlon Sports, focusing on MLB and the NFL. More about Eduardo Razo
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