If teams were smart, they would only sign guys like Darnold if they knew they were drafting a QB and wanted a year to marinate the rookie on the bench.

I'd never sign a guy like him based on some hope he'd win me a bunch of games and get me to the playoffs just to sell some tickets. Even if he does, he isn't taking you the distance.

The only ticket you really should be interested in is the golden ticket that gives you a true franchise QB and the only way you usually get one of those is to pick in the top 10. If you don't have one, you're just as well off embracing losing until you get your shot.

This is what they did...

You're talking like all owners care about football. More than half of them care more about money. Bring mediocre still sells tickets and doesn't take as much effort.

Sheesh, this really is right up Ballard and the Colts alley.

The good news for Darnold is this is a weak QB draft and veteran QB free agency/realistically available by trade market.

So many teams need a starting QB this offseason…
Titans
Giants
Jets
Saints
Raiders
Steelers
Browns
Colts

I'm not arguing against the Vikings, I'm arguing that other teams would be smart to follow suit and not foolishly offer the guy a multi-year contract that bogs them down in mediocrity.

Winning playoff games helps drive future ticket prices up which equates to more money. It also equates to selling more merchandise which equates to more money. They should want to win, not just fill stadiums 3/4 full during the regular season. Granted, they will still get the bulk of their money from the pooled broadcasting revenues but they can add on to it by simply sporting a winning team.

How much does it cost to go from a "one and done" to a contender? Many owners don't want to invest in a championship. It's not worth the cost. They can sit back and collect their TV revenue without really having to do anything big.

The Pittsburgh pirates turned this into a science. Build a beautiful stadium, invest in a just good enough team to sell tickets. After decades of failure land cy young prospect with a smoke show girlfriend. Thankfully nfl at least has a salary floor.

It’s so stupid that there’s no accountability for owners. Owners who put out a shitty product should feel the pain in their wallets. They shouldn’t hold cities hostage because they’re stuck with someone who sucks. There’s a reason every time a CBA gets negotiated they never ever show their books.

Tag Darnold for one year and see if JJ McCarthy can play. Darnold can tutor him.

Can't cut him loose until you know what JJ has.

Eh - I think MOST owners care more about football than you give them credit for.

It's hubris and pride more than anything. These guys are among a handful of billionaires in the nations ultimate zero-sum competition. They don't want to go to the owners meetings with other billionaires and have to acknowledge that their team sucks.

It's not necessarily that they care about football specifically, it's that they care about supremacy. Arrogance and pride.

I mean yeah, football makes a lot of money, but so do land investment trusts. But they don't get to be on TV by plowing billions into Blackrock.

I think the guys who care more about money than winning are the outliers. I mean look at Lamar -- did you think he didn't care about winning? I don't -- I think he BADLY wanted to win the trophy with his name on it. He just wasn't quite sure how. And he trusted the wrong people (person -- Carl Peterson). But on its face, 'being mediocre and selling tickets' is what the Chiefs did best through the 90s.

I don't think that's because he cared more about money than winning.

This will be a hard pill to swallow for us after Mahomes retires. You have to get a guy in the top 10. Maybe top 5. Sure you can try for a Hurts or Love, but look at those guys. They just aren’t good enough.

You have to hope that a guy falls just far enough like Josh Allen and Patrick Mahomes due to the perceived bias of needing “a ton of work”.

Even then I don’t think teams are as dumb about this anymore.

There’s a difference between wanting to win for ego vs having actual skin in the game. That’s the problem. The reason most of these owners pump money into their team is because of a salary floor. Without it, they wouldn’t. We see in other sports way way too many owners who won’t spend money they have into their team. I think it’s a matter of… if we’re required to spend money anyway, might as well try to win.

When you fail in an investment you lose your ass. When you fail in the nfl, you still make a shitload of money… it’s just less than your earnings potential. So the incentive is really different. I would agree it’s not just purely money driven. You have notorious cheapskates like mike brown and the mccaskeys. You also have guys like Dan Snyder and irsay where there is an utter lack of accountability. If you’re talking other sports like mlb… there are way more owners where money is more important than winning.

In the many ways we are now spoiled,we are crazy lucky to have the Hunts. A unique experience where the owner thinks of his team as family. I believe this was a huge deciding factor in bringing Reid here.

Yup. He’s gonna have a ton of leverage too.

I don’t get why people are handwaving the guy getting a Baker Mayfield esque deal. Baker is the 18th highest paid QB. That’s market rate. And hell Darnold isn’t gonna cost you draft picks.

For a team like the Colts and Giants that’s 100% worth it. It’s a shit year to draft a QB and your job is on the line. You need to get to the playoffs now.
Hell Ben Johnson might get him if he goes to Vegas.

Darnold is a fine bridge QB like Alex was. Pay him, get your pieces for your future QBOTF and keep looking in future drafts.