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00:00This is J.J. McCarthy's show, this is J.J. McCarthy's franchise for better or worse.
00:05So then, Joe, the natural question is, Sam Darnold, what happens next and how much does
00:11he receive? Another reason I don't think the Vikings are bringing him back. Sam Darnold,
00:16although there might be questions about the ceiling of his play, I still think he's going
00:21to get $25, $30 million at least on the open market per year. It's just where the quarterback
00:28value is at the moment. And then you mentioned a couple of those teams. I don't think the
00:32Titans are going to make the move unless they really move out of the draft because they do
00:37have the number one overall pick right now. But my thoughts would be the Raiders and the Steelers
00:42probably as your frontrunner. Yeah, and then I guess you could tickle in the Giants if you want
00:47to throw it in there, you know, maybe, you know, just as a potential bridge gap quarterback,
00:53especially if they draft a younger quarterback coming out of the draft. But you're right,
00:57there's a very limited amount of teams that would make sense for Sam Darnold. He can't go back to
01:03the Jets, so throw that out the window, right? He's not going to go to Tennessee, to your point,
01:08because they have the number one overall pick. And why would you go to a journeyman when you
01:13have a complete rebuild to develop the pure number one, whether it be Cam Ward or Shador
01:18Sanders or whoever they pick. So yeah, I think that's right. It's either Las Vegas, it's the
01:24Giants and maybe the Steelers. But again, you know, here's the thing. He performed well in a
01:32dome in Minnesota. If you're the Steelers, you're going to go with Sam Darnold in Pittsburgh. I mean,
01:38possibly, but I would want somebody who's a little bit more battle-tested in terms of
01:42cold weather elements. He couldn't perform in MetLife. The kid's going to step up in Pittsburgh
01:47and perform and take this team to a championship. I just don't see it. Yeah. And Joe, that's really
01:54the story, right? Let's start with the Pittsburgh Steelers, a team that made the playoffs a year ago
01:58that will now have a new starting quarterback more than likely in 2025. And we know the story
02:04under Mike Tomlin, now 18 years, never a losing record, never fewer than eight wins and a bunch
02:10of playoff appearances, even though they have not played in the AFC title game since 2016.
02:17Does Sam Darnold change that outlook in the Steel City? Does a Pittsburgh team that won
02:22double-digit games a year ago now look to be a 12-win team and an AFC North contender and an AFC
02:29championship contender because they add Sam Darnold? Probably not, right? Does he move the
02:34needle that much for a contending team? Probably not. Let's say he ends up in Las Vegas or with the
02:40New York Giants. Again, the two teams at 200 to one to win Super Bowl 60 in 2025. Does he make a
02:48team probably with a four-and-a-half or five-and-a-half win total, a seven or eight-win
02:53football team? Maybe, but that feels to me, Joe, to be a more desirable spot for Darnold and a more
02:59comfortable landing spot as well. Go to a mediocre franchise, help them be stable, perform well where
03:06the expectation and the idea of lifting a ceiling will not nearly be as paramount or desirable in
03:14those spots. Yeah, I mean, I think a perfect spot for Darnold, if the opportunity was there,
03:21would have been the Rams, right? If Stafford moved on to potentially the Giants or some other team
03:27like we were hearing, I think paired with Sean McVay in that type of offense where there's
03:32multiple playmakers, Darnold could be effective. But again, yes, I think a team like the Raiders
03:38will take a shot on him, depending upon what Tom Brady and Pete Carroll feel is the best option
03:45to maybe win some games in year number one. And then the other is the Steelers. We heard
03:51that Mike Tomlin's going to make a decision about Justin Field's future, whether that means he'll
03:56stay or go, we'll see. But again, you're really limited. I mean, does he go to the Colts
04:02to challenge Anthony Richardson? Is that a role that he would want? I don't know.
04:08You know, it's possible that would be an outside shot. Because if you're the Colts,
04:13you know you have Jonathan Taylor, you have Pittman, you have some good wide receiver talent.
04:17If AOR can't live up to expectations by, let's say, game six or seven,
04:22at least you could turn to Darnold to maybe pull out the season.