'Sam's been lights out': Kevin O'Connell praises Darnold's hot start

Darnold has thrown eight touchdowns and just two interceptions in the Vikings' 3-0 start

Sep 22, 2024; Minneapolis, Minnesota, USA; Minnesota Vikings quarterback Sam Darnold (14) passes against the Houston Texans in the second quarter at U.S. Bank Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Brad Rempel-Imagn Images / Brad Rempel-Imagn Images

Sam Darnold's early success in Minnesota doesn't seem to have taken Vikings head coach Kevin O'Connell by surprise, like it has for most of the NFL world.

Speaking on the Rich Eisen Show on Thursday, O'Connell said he "envisioned building an offense for him and with his skillsets to have success."

"Incredibly proud of Sam. Really from the first day we got him, (he) solidified a lot of the things I viewed of him from afar. I [scouted] him coming out of the draft. Knew how talented he was," O'Connell told Eisen. "When you've got the type of people to throw the ball to that he does, our o-line's playing really well and adding Aaron Jones to go along with Ty Chandler, we've been able to run the ball. We like to try to help out the quarterback as much as we can. ... Sam's been lights out, finding his teammates, being smart with the football and then weighty downs in the red zone where he's just making plays. He's more than capable of doing that every single week."

The 27-year-old quarterback came to Minnesota in the offseason on a prove-it, one-year, $10 million deal after spending the 2023 season as Brock Purdy's backup in San Francisco. Before that, Darnold had struggled to live up to the third-overall pick status in stints with the New York Jets and Carolina Panthers.

In five seasons as the starter for the Jets and Panthers, Darnold completed just 59% of his passes while throwing 61 touchdowns to 55 interceptions on teams that went 21-34. In his first three weeks as Vikings starter, Darnold is connecting on 67% of his throws while leading the league with eight touchdown passes during an undefeated start to the season.

O'Connell dove deep when asked about what he saw in Darnold as he was coming out of USC.

"There was really two or three things that stuck out to me. You always knew the talent," said O'Connell. "I actually met Sam when he was in high school. When I first got done playing, I was helping out with the Elite-11 quarterback camp that they do for the best quarterbacks in the country. Sam was there. Super talented Southern California kid but had some grit and some toughness to him. (He) just kind of seemed to be the same guy every single day and that always intrigued me.

"Then he goes to USC, a place that has had great quarterback play and standard at the position. I just remember going through his tape and seeing him play in the Cotton Bowl against Ohio State. That was (Nick) Bosa and (Chase) Young and just one of the best defensive fronts in the country. It was kind of a grimy, tough day. He was getting hit a lot, had a lot of pass attempts but he just kept standing in there, showing that big field vision. Showing the willingness to make throws from the pocket. Used his athleticism when he needed to. And then his Pro Day in Southern California — the whole reason you go to college in Southern California is to have nice, sunny, suns-out-70-degrees-no-wind Pro Day — it poured rain the whole time. The guy went out there and threw the ball great. So I just knew there was the framework in place with the right kind of guy."

Despite the rough start to his career, O'Connell remained confident he could get the best out of Darnold and help him turn things around.

"Regardless of his quarterback journey has been, it didn't really concern me because I feel really confident in what we do here. Not only myself (and) my coaching staff but the team around that guy," continued O'Connell. "To bring Sam in here and give him an opportunity to build himself up by just doing the things he's always been able to do, just be a little bit more consistent. His teammates love him, they all have a ton of confidence in him."

O'Connell, who's NFL career never took off after being selected by the Patriots in the third round of the 2008 draft, has a burgeoning QB whisperer tag that is starting to be attached to him. Darnold's successful early returns follow two of the best years of Kirk Cousins' career before an Achilles injury ended his 2023 campaign early.

The Vikings coach, though, doesn't appear to want to take all of the credit, choosing to emphasize the importance of the organization. O'Connell said he doesn't feel there is enough emphasis on the role organizations play in the development of a quarterback, reiterating a line he said earlier this year that oraganizations fail young QBs before young QBs fail organizations.

O'Connell wouldn't point out specific examples but it's hard not to think of the situations Darnold found himself in earlier in his career with lackluster surroundings in New York and Carolina.

That type of mindfulness about the overall organization around the quarterback is clearly on the mind of those inside TCO Performance Center when it comes to the progress of rookie quarterback J.J. McCarthy. The former Michigan quarterback was selected by Minnesota with the 10th overall pick in the 2024 draft and he'll miss the entirety of his rookie season due to a meniscus tear he suffered in the team's first preseason game.

O'Connell said McCarthy is doing "great" and that they meet once a week to go through the game plan as if the rookie were the one taking the snaps.

As for the quarterback his side is set to face this weekend, O'Connell believes that Jordan Love will return for Green Bay after missing the last two weeks with an ankle injury. He praised the work Packers head coach Matt LaFleur has done winning two games and overhauling his team's offense to suit Malik Willlis in Love's absence, calling it "remarkable."

Darnold and O'Connell will put their undefeated, hot start on the line in Green Bay this Sunday with kickoff slated for 12 p.m. CT.