Sam Darnold signed a 3-year $100.5 million deal with the Seattle Seahawks. Darnold was perhaps the biggest free agent on the offensive side of the ball. The Darnold signing will affect a multitude of relevant fantasy players.
Winners
Jaxon Smith-Njigba
2024 was a breakout season for Seattle Seahawks Wide Receiver, Jaxon Smith-Njigba. The former Ohio State Buckeye recorded 100 receptions, 1,130 receiving yards, and six touchdowns, which led to his first top-ten finish in PPR fantasy formats.
It’s been quite the busy offseason so far for the Seahawks, who released franchise icon Tyler Lockett last week. Following that, the team traded Quarterback Geno Smith to the Las Vegas Raiders and Wide Receiver DK Metcalf to the Pittsburgh Steelers.Â
Metcalf and Lockett leave behind 182 targets that are now up for grabs in the Seattle passing attack. Smith-Njigba, who had a team-high 137 targets in 2024, should be in for an even higher target share in 2025.Â
Sam Darnold, like Smith-Njigba, had a breakout year in 2024, throwing for 4,319 yards and 35 touchdowns for the Minnesota Vikings. Bringing in Darnold to replace Geno Smith is exactly what Smith-Njigba needed to build off of his breakout 2024 campaign.
Kenneth Walker
Kenneth Walker is another big winner from the Seahawks signing Sam Darnold. Walker had an up-and-down season in 2024. The former Michigan State running back missed six games and struggled with efficiency. Walker’s yard per carry was the lowest of his young career at a modest 3.75 yards. The Seahawks brought in a new offensive play-caller in Klint Kubiak, who should help bring a more balanced offense to a team that threw the ball at just under 63% last season. Kubiak will most likely be calling Walker’s number a good amount of time next season and bringing in Darnold should help stabilize the offense.Â
Walker had a career-high in receptions with 46 in 2024. Darnold threw a good amount of checkdowns during his time in Minnesota as Aaron Jones recorded 51 receptions. Walker could be in line for a career-high in volume. History has shown that volume is king in fantasy.
Seattle TE Room
A sleeper winner from the Darnold signing is whoever is going to start at tight end for the Seahawks in 2025. Noah Fant was the leader of the Seattle tight end room last season. Fant recorded 48 receptions for 500 yards and hauled in one touchdown in 2024. Fant is an athletic tight end who has not been able to live up to the hype of being a first-round pick back in 2019. Fant is under contract for next season, but Seattle could cut Fant to save some cap space.
If Fant is gone, AJ Barner could step up and become a starter for Seattle next season. Barner fits well into the Kubiak offense due to his blocking ability. Barner had a relatively good rookie campaign for a tight end. Barner scored 4 touchdowns and caught 30 of his 38 targets.
With Darnold at the helm for the Seahawks in 2025, and a lack of receiving options on the roster, whichever tight end ends up starting could pay dividends on a late-round pick.
Losers
Minnesota Vikings Offensive Cast
The entirety of the Vikings’ offensive supporting cast is at a loss after Darnold left town. The Vikings were one of the most fantasy-relevant teams last season, producing four players in the top 70 overall scoring. That’s not even including Tight End, T.J. Hockenson, who made his season debut in Week 9.
Most notably on the Vikings offense, Justin Jefferson finished as the WR2 in 2024. Darnold threw for the fifth most touchdown passes last season with 35, and 10 of those touchdowns went to Jefferson. The Vikings will most likely be replacing Darnold with former first-round pick, J.J. McCarthy. McCarthy is fully recovered from a torn meniscus he suffered last August. While McCarthy is the quarterback of the future for the Vikings, it is unlikely that he will throw for over 4,000 yards and 35 touchdowns.Â
Perhaps the biggest loser of Darnold leaving town is Jordan Addison. Addison scored double-digit fantasy points in eight of his fifteen games. Darnold and the Vikings’ efficient passing offense led Addison to a fantastic 13.89 yards per catch. With Darnold gone, it will be hard for Addison to replicate his 2024 season.