CHICAGO — There is a world in which Sam Darnold never returned to the game Sunday. An alternate universe where he was not the man under center with overtime beginning in a game the Minnesota Vikings should have ended much earlier.
But there Darnold was at Soldier Field, clasping his helmet with both hands and listening to head coach Kevin O’Connell’s play calls. There Darnold was, dropping back, planting his back foot and throwing darts over the middle of the field. There Darnold was, operating in high-pressure moments the way trusted NFL starting quarterbacks do.
Darnold completed all six of his pass attempts in the extra period for 90 yards. Minnesota matriculated the ball up the field, converted a 40-yard field goal and sealed a 30-27 win over the Chicago Bears. Darnold finished 22-of-34 passing for 330 yards and two touchdowns. For the second straight week, he lifted a 9-2 team that needed him.
“Show me somebody who had a better game at the quarterback position (this week),” O’Connell said. “That kind of game? Under those circumstances?”
.@jalennailor gives the #Vikings the lead!
📺: @NFLonFOX pic.twitter.com/D3AZuw1nDE
— Minnesota Vikings (@Vikings) November 24, 2024
The most relevant circumstance? An injury. Late in the fourth quarter, with the Vikings driving in hopes of extending their seven-point lead, Bears defensive lineman Gervon Dexter Sr. landed awkwardly on Darnold’s left leg. The 27-year-old quarterback stood immediately, thinking he could walk it off. But he couldn’t. Trainers tended to him, then he limped slowly to the sideline.
As he lingered on the bench, even Darnold wondered whether he’d be able to return. He paced for a couple of plays, as backup Nick Mullens completed a short pass for a first down, then trotted back out onto the field. O’Connell asked Darnold through his headset whether he felt better than a six out of 10. Darnold responded with a thumbs-up. “Better than an eight?” O’Connell pressed. Another thumbs-up from Darnold.
If you had the time, you could make a lengthy montage of what Darnold’s body had already been through this season. Danielle Hunter bent Darnold’s knee back in Week 3. A free-running Jets linebacker speared Darnold in the chest in Week 5. Rams edge rusher Byron Young grabbed Darnold’s face mask and nearly turned his head around in Week 8. Three weeks ago, Colts defensive tackle Grover Stewart clobbered Darnold in the helmet with a right uppercut.
This is part of the job description for a starting quarterback in the NFL: get bruised and beaten, but keep staring down the barrel. Darnold, who had already matched his career high for passing touchdowns in a season (19) coming into Sunday, has not had a perfect season. But in the toughness category, which will matter both for the Vikings’ chances at making hay in the postseason and for NFL teams seeking a starting QB this offseason, Darnold has easily passed the test.
In fact, toughness may be Darnold’s most defining characteristic. Would he have managed his way through the Jets and Panthers experiences without it? Would he still be so unwilling to blame those figures and franchises from his early years as a pro?
Darnold is asked regularly about those times and how this situation with the Vikings is so different. He listens to the question, often nodding, then gives a cliched answer. He knows people want him to dunk on the leadership in New York and Carolina. But he’d rather shoulder the blame for his struggles because he knows it won’t topple him.
“He’s been through the wringer in some situations,” Vikings quarterbacks coach Josh McCown said of Darnold before the season. “And he has the fortitude and toughness to keep coming back and believing. I’m proud of him for that.”
Darnold has needed a certain amount of mettle this season, too, especially when it comes to turnovers. Darnold threw five interceptions in Weeks 9 and 10. His dip felt scarily similar to last year for the Vikings when midseason acquisition (and career backup) Josh Dobbs shined for a couple of weeks, then couldn’t turn off the turnover faucet.
If anything, the bad throws seemed to irk Darnold. After games, he spoke about the plays in a way that sounded like a father chiding his son for making the same mistakes over and over. Last week against the Titans, Darnold elevated the Vikings with his pocket presence and escapability. On Sunday, the separator was his conviction. It looked like he knew what he was seeing from a coverage standpoint, and he understood how to position his feet and eyes to attack open space.
“I appreciate Sam for throwing dimes,” said wide receiver Jordan Addison, who caught a career-high eight passes for a career-high 162 yards and a touchdown.
Superstar receiver Justin Jefferson is usually on the receiving end of Darnold’s deep balls. Chicago limited him to two catches for 27 yards, but in doing so, the Bears were more susceptible to big days from Addison, tight end T.J. Hockenson (seven receptions for 114 yards) and running back Aaron Jones (129 all-purpose yards and a touchdown).
Addison extended beyond the Bears defense to snatch a 45-yarder while being bear-hugged in the first half. On the first play from scrimmage in the second half, Darnold curved a pass over the top of two defenders to Addison, who caught it and tight-roped down the sideline for 69 yards.
Jordan Addison bounces off a defender for a 69-yard gain!
📺: #MINvsCHI on FOX
📱: https://t.co/waVpO909ge pic.twitter.com/OVIYAQc3Rk— NFL (@NFL) November 24, 2024
It took a barrage of Caleb Williams missiles, a horribly covered kick return and a recovered onside kick for the Bears to score 11 points in the last two minutes of regulation and tie the game. Minnesota stopped Chicago at the beginning of overtime, leading to Darnold’s game-winning drive.
But even that drive began brutally. The Vikings had called a play with two options depending on the coverage, and Darnold chose the wrong one, according to O’Connell. A sack set the offense back.
But Minnesota neither folded nor eased off the aggression. Darnold connected with Hockenson on second down over the middle and then found Addison on the right sideline for a first down. He got the ball to Jefferson for a 20-yard chunk play over the middle. He went through his progressions and dumped a checkdown pass to Jones. He layered a pass to Hockenson for 29 yards deep into Chicago territory. And with that, the Vikings centered the ball and kicked the game-winner.
“First and foremost,” Darnold said afterward, “what a resilient win — from everyone in that locker room.”
A few minutes later, he stepped gingerly away from the lectern and shuffled steadily down a few stairs. The pain was as evident as his ability to overcome it.
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(Photo: Luke Hales / Getty Images)
