Minnesota Vikings quarterback Sam Darnold will likely clean up if he hits free agency, but the team has incentive to stop that from happening.

After the Kansas City Chiefs and Philadelphia Eagles duke it out for a Lombardi Trophy, the NFL will fully transition into the offseason. Already, we have teams making preparations for the upcoming 2025 campaign and formulating a plan for how they'll retool their rosters in order to make a deep playoff push.

If Minnesota makes the wrong choice on Darnold's future, it could haunt the franchise for a generation. GM Kwesi Adofo-Mensah has a few options. He can tag Darnold, let him walk, or re-sign him to a long-term contract in the Baker Mayfield vein.