Sam Darnold 2025 Fantasy Preview
2024: Sam Darnold had a career-kickstarting season with the Vikings last season. With J.J. McCarthy tearing his meniscus, Darnold took over as the starter and flourished in Kevin O’Connell’s offense to the tune of 4,319 yards and 35 touchdowns, both top-five in the NFL. His 80.3 PFF passing grade was the best of his career as the Vikings finished 14-3. Darnold got a boost from the offensive scheme and was a pleasantly surprising low-end QB1 last season.
What’s changed: Darnold’s performance earned a three-year, $100.5 million deal with the Seahawks this offseason. He will be a bridge quarterback for a team cycling past the Geno Smith/D.K. Metcalf/Tyler Lockett era and will get Jaxon Smith-Njigba and Cooper Kupp to throw to. Klint Kubiak was Darnold’s passing game coordinator with the 49ers in 2023 and will now be his offensive coordinator with the Seahawks.
2025 Outlook: Familiarity with Kubiak should help Darnold’s downfield passing. However, the Seahawks and Kubiak’s systems historically pass less than the Vikings’ system. For a non-rushing quarterback, that will cap Darnold’s ceiling into the low-end QB2 range.
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| Year | Team | G | COM | ATT | PCT | YDS | TD | INT | R-YD | R-TD | PPR | HPPR | NPPR |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2022 | CAR | 6 | 82 | 140 | 59 | 1143 | 7 | 3 | 106 | 2 | 86 | 86 | 86 |
| 2023 | SF | 10 | 28 | 46 | 61 | 297 | 2 | 1 | 15 | 1 | 23 | 23 | 23 |
| 2024 | MIN | 17 | 361 | 545 | 66 | 4319 | 35 | 12 | 212 | 1 | 308 | 308 | 308 |
| PROJ 2025 | SEA | 17 | 374 | 585 | 64 | 4210 | 25 | 14 | 114 | 1 | 261 | 261 | 261 |
**Projections from Spotlight Sports Group
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