Dave Portnoy gives brutal verdict on Sam Darnold’s abysmal performance as Rams crush Vikings quarterback in wildcard win
In the midst of a discouraging performance in the NFC Wild Card game, Barstool Sports founder Dave Portnoy eviscerated Minnesota Vikings quarterback Sam Darnold.
Throughout the regular season, Darnold’s story about a backup quarterback leading the Vikings to a 14-3 record was inspiring as the Minnesota signal caller was able to overcome the odds and take his team to the playoffs.
But it was in their first playoff game against the Los Angeles Rams that the Vikings quarterback laid an egg, as Darnold couldn’t handle the pressure of the LA pass rush and make significant gains on offense.
Portnoy took to X, formerly Twitter, and denounced Darnold’s performance that night.
Some of that anger could be because he placed a parlay bet on five legs of $11,000 on the line – where one of the legs required the Viking wide receiver to score a touchdown at any point in the game (which didn’t happen).
“Three weeks ago people were asking if JJ McCarthy was on the market. What a difference a few weeks make. Darnold looks awful again,” Portnoy posted Monday night.
Dave Portnoy of Barstool Sports ran into Vikings QB Sam Darnold after his rough outing
Portnoy posted a series of tweets criticizing Darnold during his losing effort in the playoffs
Darnold was not scheduled to start this season after the Vikings selected McCarthy 11th overall in the NFL Draft out of the University of Michigan. Portnoy is a Michigan alum and a huge fan of the Wolverines football team.
Portnoy once again took to the social media platform to roast him later in the game,
“There was literally a guy with no one within 20 yards of him. My god Darnold sucks.”
He later mocked Darnold again after the Vikings quarterback was sacked — leading to a Rams fumble by defensive end Jared Verse, which was run back for a touchdown to extend LA’s lead.
Portnoy posted two more tweets during the game — one highlighting another open receiver that Darnold didn’t see, and the other simply saying, “Vikings retired. I can’t say I blame them.’
While you could say that Darnold was overwhelmed in the wake of a tragedy by a team that played out of civic pride, that doesn’t tell you exactly how bad his play was.
Darnold completed 25 of 40 passes for just 245 yards, one touchdown, one interception and a fumble.
But it was Darnold’s nine sacks that really put the game out of the Vikings’ reach.
Darnold was sacked nine times, tying a record for most sacks taken by a QB in a playoff game
One of those sacks was a strip sack (above), which led to a fumble that was recovered for a touchdown
Darnold’s counterpart, Matthew Stafford, also struggled, but completed two TD passes
Darnold is now tied with Cincinnati Bengals quarterback Joe Burrow and former Houston Oilers quarterback Warren Moon for the all-time record for most sacks taken by a quarterback in a playoff game.
He wasn’t that far off the most sacks taken by a QB in an NFL game – a record co-held by Moon and Donovan McNabb when they were both sacked 12 times.
The Vikings’ ground game didn’t fare much better as they were led by Aaron Jones, who rushed 13 times for 48 yards.
Rams quarterback Matthew Stafford didn’t fare much better in terms of passing yards (just 208), but his two passing touchdowns were enough to put the game out of reach.
The Rams defense was by far the best unit of the night – with relentless pressure forcing three Minnesota punts and two turnovers on downs. Add to that the strip-sack touchdown and Los Angeles can enter the next round with confidence on Monday night.
Next up for Los Angeles is an NFC Divisional round matchup against the Philadelphia Eagles.