Deep balls key to Sam Darnold s resurrection with Vikings
Sunday Darnold leads the 4-0 Vikings against the Jets who selected him with the No 3 pick in the 2018 draft
The biggest storylines matchup keys and stat nuggets for NFL Week 5 -- plus picks Our 13-game guide
EAGAN, Minn. -- The NFL is awash this season with concerns about quarterback play and the lockdown that defenses have shown on downfield throwing -- for most teams, anyway.
In Minnesota, the message to quarterback Sam Darnold has been decidedly different.
"If I've told him once I've told him 100 times," coach Kevin O'Connell said this week, "'You're as talented of a deep-ball thrower as I've been around, and I want you to take the [opportunities], and I want you to be confident to pull the trigger.'"
Some of that conviction arises from the Vikings facing defenses that use a two-high safety scheme to limit big downfield plays from star receiver Justin Jefferson. Since the start of the 2022 season, the Vikings have taken more offensive snaps (354) against such looks than all but one team (Dolphins, 429).
Mostly, however, it stems from O'Connell's genuine respect for Darnold's deep accuracy, a skill the 2018 No. 3 draft pick has honed in recent years, and an asset the Vikings hope to exploit further as the season continues, beginning with Sunday's matchup against the team that draft him, the New York Jets, at London's Tottenham Hotspur Stadium (9:30 a.m. ET, NFL Network).
As Darnold has begun resurrecting his career to emerge as a (very) early MVP candidate (+1300, per ESPN BET), he has attempted 11 passes that have traveled at least 20 yards in the air past the line of scrimmage (T-19th). However, he has connected on seven of them, including perfectly placed strikes to Jefferson that led to 97- and 44-yard receptions, for a league-best completion rate of 63.6%. Overall, Darnold has thrown 10.4% of his passes 20 or more yards past the line of scrimmage (15th).
Questions about mechanics hounded Darnold earlier in his career, which began with the Jets and later moved to the Carolina Panthers and San Francisco 49ers. O'Connell and the Vikings' coaching staff have taken their stab at adjusting them, mostly by softening his movement in the pocket as he progresses through his reads, but none of their changes have focused specifically on deep throws.
Darnold has been dropping dimes since the first day of training camp, when he hit Jefferson in stride on a pass 50 yards downfield, and the Vikings soon came to realize he could enhance their offense with similar throws during the regular season.
The Vikings produced an efficient passing offense in O'Connell's first two seasons with the Vikings, but it didn't necessarily seek to be explosive. With quarterback Kirk Cousins (now with the Atlanta Falcons), and the three backups who played after he ruptured his Achilles tendon last season, the Vikings ranked 27th in the league with 9.4% of their attempts traveling 20 yards or more in the air.
This season, Darnold's first-ever pass to Jefferson in a game traveled 34 yards against the New York Giants in Week 1. It led Jefferson to outrun double coverage near the sideline and gain an additional 10 yards after the catch.
The connection came with near-flawless mechanics; Darnold took a three-step drop from shotgun, planted his back foot, took one hitch and let loose with a pass that mixed what Jefferson considered the ideal balance of zip and air underneath it.
"For the most part I feel like every single ball he throws doesn't have too much pace on it," Jefferson said. "And it's not too slow. So I feel like he puts the right amount of force towards it and allows us to catch a ball that's not too hard, but also we see the ball coming at a good speed.
"So I feel like he understands from a receiver standpoint, we don't like to try to catch a hard throw every single time. So [he tries] to make it a little easier on us to try to put a little bit more touch on it for us to catch it, grab it and turn our foot."
It would be wrong, however, to assume Darnold is simply a naturally precise deep thrower. He has spoken several times in recent weeks about his efforts to improve his deep-ball accuracy while in the NFL.
"I feel like that was kind of something I struggled with early on," he said. "And I'm just going to continue to work on that. Because when you do get those [opportunities], you don't want to miss them."
Even while acknowledging that "it sounds funny," Darnold has used two points of emphasis to guide that work: keeping his head still and his eyes on the target.
"When I was a young player," he said, "I would throw and look up at the ball immediately. I think for me, it's about finishing through the target, keeping my eyes on him, and then if I do want to track the ball, which is natural for me, I can do that.
"But I really want to make sure I finish through my target, especially on those deep balls, to be able to guide the football as much as I can, all the way through the fingertips."
More than ever, NFL defenses are geared to discourage such throws. But with Jefferson and his fellow receivers stressing those defenses, and Darnold feeding them, the Vikings hope they have the antidote to that trend.
The Dodgers changed up their NLDS rotation and will start Yoshinobu Yamamoto in Game 1 so he can be available for a potential Game 5 on an extra day of rest
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Our detailed prediction and analysis for the Getafe vs. Osasuna La Liga \ngame on October 5, 2024 is featured below. Drawing from 10,000 game","Preview: Getafe vs. Osasuna - prediction, team news, lineups? Osasuna will be aiming to make it three wins from their last four matches \nin La Liga when they continue their campaign with an away fixture","Getafe vs Osasuna Prediction and Betting Tips | 5th October 2024? The 2024-25 edition of La Liga is back in action with another set of \nmatches this weekend as Getafe take on an impressive Osasuna side in an","Getafe vs. Osasuna Prediction, Odds, La Liga Picks [10\/5\/2024]? La Liga action continues on Saturday, October 5 at 10:15AM ET as Osasuna \ntakes on Getafe at Estadio Coliseum."]
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performance? Southampton are now looking forward to the massive Arsenal away fixture at
the weekend before the return of the international break.Evanilson off the mark as Cherries spank Saints? AFC Bournemouth's record signing Evanilson on Monday scored his first goal
for the club as the Cherries beat Southampton 3-1 in the English
Al-Nasr duo excluded from the Al-Orouba match? Al-Nasr coach Stefano Pioli made the decision to exclude the team's duo
from.
Is Cristiano Ronaldo Playing Tonight for Al Nassr vs Al Orobah?? After some AFC Champions League action, Al Nassr is back to basics. The
Knights of the Najd return to pitch for their Saudi Pro League clashI loved my time at Man City despite Pep weight comments - but it was
draining and I had to get out? "Obviously, I'd never expect myself to be down here, but yeah, it just
happened," says a nonchalant Kalvin Phillips, opening up for the
Martin Keown claims Pep Guardiola made a big mistake with £45m Man City
player? After Kalvin Phillips recently revealed that Guardiola's comments on him
being overweight after the 2022 World Cup frustrated him,
Kalvin Phillips claims 'every club asked about his weight' after Pep
Guardiola labelled him 'overweight' - as Man City outcast reveals he is
back to his Leeds level at Ipswich? Phillips expressed frustration at a 'narrative' that grew over his fitness
levels; The midfielder is seeking to reignite his career during a loan
spell atVilla denied as Delap sparkles in Ipswich draw? Aston Villa missed the chance to go second in the Premier League as Liam
Delap's double rescued Ipswich in a 2-2 draw at Portman Road on
Ipswich have 'so many positives to take' from Villa draw - McKenna? Kieran McKenna saluted his players after Ipswich Town extended their
unbeaten run to four games by salvaging a point against Aston Villa.
Premier League starlet is embroiled in bizarre international row after
being called up by both England AND Portugal Under 18s - on the same day!? A Premier League youngster has been called up by England and Portugal; The
prospect is eligible for both countries and will decide who to play forSoccer-Portugal call up same player named in England Under-18 squad? Mane was called up for a second successive England youth camp by coach Liam
Bramley before the team travel to Marbella for a four-team tournament this
month
2026 Four-star Athlete From New Jersey To Visit Penn State This Weekend? One of New Jersey's top prospects in the 2026 recruiting class will be on
campus this weekend.
Tyler's Tidbits: Latest look at expected visitors for UCLA + James Franklin
pays a visit to top flip target? Tyler's Tidbits provides the latest Penn State recruiting intel.Getafe vs. Osasuna (Oct 5, 2024) Pregame? Pregame analysis and predictions of the Getafe vs. Osasuna Spanish Laliga
game to be played on October 5, 2024 on ESPN.
Preview: Getafe vs. Osasuna - prediction, team news, lineups? Osasuna will be aiming to make it three wins from their last four matches
in La Liga when they continue their campaign with an away fixture