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Free agent quarterback Sam Darnold has reportedly agreed to a three-year, $100 million deal with the Seattle Seahawks, sources with knowledge of the situation confirmed to NFL Network's Ian Rapoport on Monday (March 10).
Darnold, 27, is coming off a career renaissance during his lone season with the Minnesota Vikings in 2024, which included winning the 2024 NFL Most Improved Player of the Year award by the Pro Football Writers of America and was a finalist for the Associated Press Comeback Player of the Year award. The Seahawks are days removed from trading former starting quarterback Geno Smith to the Las Vegas Raiders.
"The #Seahawks have their new QB: It’s Sam Darnold. The former #Vikings starter is finalizing a deal with Seattle, per The Insiders. He gets a 3-years deal worth nearly $100M, taking the place of Geno Smith. Darnold has been the favorite ever since the trade," Rapoport wrote on his X account.
Darnold threw for a career-best 4,319 yards and 35 touchdowns during the regular season, but left much to be desired in the Vikings' two biggest games. The former USC standout threw for 166 yards on 18 of 41 passing against Detroit and 245 yards, one touchdown and one interceptions on 25 of 40 passing against Los Angeles, which included one fumble, being sacked nine times and leading a Vikings offense that went 6 of 17 on third downs and 1 of 4 on fourth downs.
Darnold signed a one-year deal with the Vikings last offseason prior to the team selecting quarterback J.J. McCarthy at No. 10 overall in the 2024 NFL Draft. O'Connell insisted that Darnold would enter the season as the starter even prior to McCarthy suffering a season-ending knee injury during a preseason game.
Darnold's breakout season led to speculation of a potential quarterback controversy entering McCarthy's second season prior to his struggles in his final regular season game and blowout loss to the Los Angeles Rams in the Wild Card Round.