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Sam Darnold Makes Vikings History With Rare Feat in Surprising Start to 2024 Season

The 27-year-old quarterback has enjoyed a historic start to his Minnesota tenure.

Tom Dierberger

Through three games, Darnold has thrown for 657 yards, eight touchdowns and two interceptions while completing 67.9% of his pass attempts.
Through three games, Darnold has thrown for 657 yards, eight touchdowns and two interceptions while completing 67.9% of his pass attempts. / Jeffrey Becker-Imagn Images
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One of the most unexpected storylines in the early weeks of the 2024 NFL season has been the swift rise of Minnesota Vikings quarterback Sam Darnold.

Previously crowned as a bust by two of his former franchises—the New York Jets and Carolina Panthers—Darnold has led the Vikings to a perfect 3–0 start heading into their Week 4 matchup against the rival Green Bay Packers on Sunday.

In his first three games in Minnesota, Darnold has thrown for 657 yards and a league-high eight touchdowns while completing 67.9% of his pass attempts. The 27-year-old also is the first quarterback in Vikings history to win his first three games of the season and throw multiple touchdown passes in each of them.

From Fran Tarkenton to Daunte Culpepper to Brett Favre to Kirk Cousins, Minnesota has seen plenty of talent under center over its 64-year history as an NFL franchise. But none of them were able to achieve this feat.

The Vikings have started a year 3–0 in 10 different seasons, starting hot three times in the 1970s ('73. '74, '75), twice in the 1990s ('96, '98), and five times this century (2000, '03, '09, '16, '24).

In 2016—the year Minnesota started 5–0 but missed the playoffs—quarterbacks Sam Bradford and Shaun Hill combined to throw just three touchdowns in the first three weeks. In 2009, a 40-year-old Favre threw multiple touchdowns twice in the first three games but tossed just one score in the season opener. In 1998, the year Minnesota won 15 games and finished a missed Gary Anderson field-goal attempt away from Super Bowl XXXIII, quarterback Randall Cunningham didn't really get rolling until Week 4.

With a new piece of franchise history in hand, Darnold and the red-hot Vikings will head to Lambeau Field on Sunday to take on the rival Packers, who have surrendered five touchdown passes to opposing quarterbacks in the first three games.

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Tom Dierberger

TOM DIERBERGER

Tom Dierberger is a staff writer and editor on the Breaking and Trending News team at Sports Illustrated. He joined SI in November 2023 after stints at FOX Sports, Bally Sports and NBC Sports. Dierberger has a bachelor's in communication from St. John's University. In his spare time, he can be seen throwing out his arm while playing fetch with his dog, Walter B. Boy.

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