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Minnesota Vikings wide receiver Justin Jefferson admitted that it seemed like his team would've done better if it had kept quarterback Sam Darnold during the offseason with Darnold days away from starting for the Seattle Seahawks in Super Bowl LX.
"Yeah, I mean, for sure. Definitely. Everyone knows the difficulty of the quarterback position this year, of how we was dealt it," Jefferson told USA TODAY's Prince Grimes when asked if he thought the Vikings could have reached the Super Bowl by re-signing Darnold. "But having a quarterback that's already had a season under his belt with us, knew the plays, knew the playbook, knew the players. Of course, throwing to me, Jordan Addison, T.J. Hockenson, all of these guys, I definitely felt like we would've done better. But it is what it is. It's on to new and better things, but I'm definitely happy and proud for him that he was able to reach it this year."
Darnold, a former No. 3 overall pick, was signed a one-year deal with the Vikings last offseason with the franchise aiming for him to be a bridge quarterback to then-rookie No. 10 overall pick J.J. McCarthy. The former USC standout, instead, had a career renaissance after McCarthy's season-ending knee injury in his first preseason game.
Darnold led the Vikings to a 14-3 regular season record, the second-most wins in franchise history, while throwing for a career-best 4,319 yards and 35 touchdowns, but struggled in the team's Wild Card Round loss to the Los Angeles Rams. The veteran quarterback signed a three-year deal with the Seahawks and matched his record from the previous season, while also throwing for 470 yards and four touchdowns on 37 of 53 passing in two playoff games ahead of his team's Super Bowl LX matchup against the New England Patriots on Sunday (February 2).
The Vikings, on the other hand, fell short of the postseason and struggled at the quarterback position with McCarthy missing seven games and lacking consistency when healthy, as well as needing to start Carson Wentz in five games and undrafted rookie Max Brosmer in two.