Rumored Sam Darnold favorite should make the Vikings' offseason QB decision very easy

It was always going to be a one-year thing. Sam Darnold made the most of his opportunity last season with the Minnesota Vikings: The former No. 3 overall pick by the New York Jets out of USC had a career year, leading his team to the playoffs and earned the first Pro Bowl nod of his career. However, it seems as though he has priced himself out of Minnesota as well.

According to ESPN's Adam Schefter, Darnold is expected to garner some major offseason interest from the Las Vegas Raiders. They are in dire need of a new starting quarterback. Darnold is still on the good side of 30 and the Raiders love to overspend in free agency. The fact that former USC head coach Pete Carroll is calling the shots makes this an enticing landing spot for him, in addition to the presence of minority owner Tom Brady.

As for the Vikings, it looks to be full steam ahead for J.J. McCarthy next season. The former top-10 pick out of Michigan played in one preseason game last year before a knee injury ended his rookie campaign before it even began. McCarthy was far and away the rawest of the six quarterbacks taken inside the top 12 of last year's NFL Draft. He is talented, but I do remain skeptical of his game.

All it means is the Vikings owe it to themselves to see if the McCarthy investment is going to pan out.

Darnold would in theory play for Carroll, be mentored by Brady and run the offense for Chip Kelly.

Sam Darnold will draw interest from the Las Vegas Raiders this offseason

While I am not the biggest McCarthy fan, I am in total agreement that moving on from Darnold this offseason is the right call. He is going to have success on his next team, even if that is to the Vikings' detriment. Again, they have to know what they have invested in with McCarthy. He is a former five-star, but only played three years at Michigan, not earning the starting job until his second season.

If McCarthy works out for Minnesota, then the Vikings can have the franchise quarterback they have been dreaming about for years. This will allow them to sustain excellence for the rest of this decade and well into next one. As for Darnold, he may be the missing piece to get the Silver and Black back to committing to excellence again. The franchise has had success before with free agent quarterbacks.

Just because a breakup is imminent does not mean there will be one winner and one loser. Both the Vikings and potentially the Raiders could have success with their new starting quarterbacks. While there are better signal-callers all across the NFL, the Raiders need stability at the position in the worst way possible and the Vikings must roll the dice to see if someone can get them over the top.

It may not end up as such, but I feel this move could end up being a win-win for both parties involved.