Sam Darnold? J.J. McCarthy? Daniel Jones? Vikings GM talks 2025 QB plans

Will the starting quarterback for the Minnesota Vikings in 2025 be Sam Darnold, J.J. McCarthy or Daniel Jones? It's the biggest question of the offseason and Vikings general manager Kwesi Adofo-Mensah isn't tipping his hand.

Entering his fourth season as GM, Adofo-Mensah was fully prepared for Thursday's end-of-season press conference with answers that provided a verbal pat on the back to every quarterback on the roster.

"You're talking about the most important position in our sport and I don't think it's a bad thing to assemble a lot of talented players in that room who fit your vision, fit how you want to play football, fit from a personnel standpoint what you want to do," Adofo-Mensah said.

Darnold, who earned a Pro Bowl selection after passing for more than 4,300 yards with 35 touchdowns while leading Minnesota to a 14-3 record, is set to become a free agent in March. While the Vikings have a number of paths they could take with Darnold, the 27-year-old has undoubtedly put himself in the conversation to start for the Vikings in 2025.

"We got to see Sam play some incredible football for us. Won a lot of big games," Adofo-Mensah said. "We're talking about games where he won them for us. There was a lot of games where he was a win-because-of-type player. And you also have to net that with all of it in totality."

The elephant in the room is J.J. McCarthy, the 10th overall pick who is getting closer to full strength after undergoing season-ending surgery for a meniscus injury during the preseason.

One tell from Adofo-Mensah, perhaps, is that he said that before McCarthy got injured the QB race was so tight that they didn't "know what was going to happen at the finish of training camp.”

How is McCarthy doing physically?

"He's on the field, throwing and training," Adofo-Mensah said. "He looks great. He's excited. You talk about a kid who's just obsessed with football and loves being around the game. We're excited about what we have in him. We're excited about this offseason for him, it's a big offseason."

While Adofo-Mensah said Darnold exploding into an MVP-caliber quarterback was "part of the calculus" when the Vikings signed him to a one-year, $10 million contract, he didn't say no when asked if he'd be comfortable with McCarthy taking over as the starter in 2025.

"We're really confident in him, his work ethic and his preparation, but I can't sit here and tell you I know anything for certain," Adofo-Mensah said. "I know that I'm willing to believe in the person that we have. That position is about talent and preparation, and he's got those things in spades. So if that's the course of action we decide, we'll go there confidently."

Daniel Jones, who will also become a free agent in March if the Vikings don't re-sign him, is also still in the potential 2025 picture.

"He's a potential option for us going forward," Adofo-Mensah said. "Most important position in the sport. We'r'e excited to have potential options that we think can come here and give us a certain required level of play that can help us compete and win games."

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