What's the Vikings' Fantasy Football Outlook With Sam Darnold?

Minnesota Vikings first-round pick J.J. McCarthy will reportedly need surgery to repair a torn meniscus.

McCarthy's exact timeline is unclear, but he will assuredly miss an extended period of time. In turn, Sam Darnold is expected to serve as Minnesota's starting quarterback for the foreseeable future.

(UPDATE: McCarthy will reportedly miss the entire season following his surgery, according to NFL Network's Ian Rapoport.)

What is the fantasy football impact of McCarthy's injury? Can Sam Darnold keep the rest of Minnesota's fantasy football values afloat?

Vikings Fantasy Football Outlook

Sam Darnold was already looking like the presumptive starter before McCarthy's injury, so this doesn't change much in the short-term. Darnold started but played just one series in Minnesota's first preseason game, and he was listed as the starter in their initial preseason depth chart.

Darnold himself isn't much of a fantasy football option, though that could change if McCarthy misses an extended period of time. He's started seven games the last two seasons during which he averaged 15.3 fantasy points per game.

The bigger question is how Darnold's status as the starter impacts the Vikings' skill position players.

Justin Jefferson, Aaron Jones, and Jordan Addison are all top-100 picks, according to FantasyPros' consensus average draft position (ADP) data.

Jefferson's value remains strong as he's still one of the best wide receivers in the NFL. We've seen Darnold funnel targets to a top option before, most recently feeding former Carolina Panthers receiver D.J. Moore a 30% target share from Weeks 12-18 in 2022. Moore was the WR19 (12.4 points per game) in half-PPR during that stretch.

Jones, too, could maintain value with Darnold under center. During Darnold's 2022 stretch run as the starter, the Panther supported the RB27 (Chuba Hubbard) and RB36 (D'Onta Foreman). Neither back saw more than a 50% snap share, but Darnold was competent enough that both averaged over two red zone rush attempts per game.

Jordan Addison's value could take a hit with this news. There was at least a world where the highly touted McCarthy could support multiple fantasy-relevant wide receivers. Based on Sam Darnold's track record, there isn't much optimism he can make Jefferson and Addison worth starting on a week-to-week basis.

The 2022 Panthers didn't have many options outside of Moore, but Darnold didn't target any other wideout more than 14% of the time. No other pass-catcher besides Moore averaged more than two receptions or 30 yards per game.

Darnold spread the ball out a bit more during his lone start with the San Francisco 49ers last season, with two wideouts cracking a 20% target share. Still, that came in a meaningless Week 18 game where the Niners were resting starters. It remains to be seen if Darnold can do that over a full season.

For now, I wouldn't move Jefferson or Jones from where they were ranked before McCarthy's injury. Addison takes a small hit in value if only because we've yet to see Sam Darnold consistently support multilple pass-catchers for fantasy football.

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The above author is a FanDuel employee and is not eligible to compete in public daily fantasy contests or place sports betting wagers on FanDuel. The advice provided by the author does not necessarily represent the views of FanDuel. Taking the author's advice will not guarantee a successful outcome. You should use your own judgment when participating in daily fantasy contests or placing sports wagers.