Who Should I Start? Andy Dalton or Sam Darnold

Sunday, October 27, 3:13 PM

The Carolina Panthers will not have quarterback Andy Dalton (thumb) or running back Jonathon Brooks (knee) for Sunday's game against the Denver Broncos. Dalton is inactive after injuring his right thumb during a minor car accident earlier this week. His absence re-inserts Bryce Young into the Panthers starting lineup for Week 8. Meanwhile, Brooks is still on the non-football injury list after Carolina failed to activate him on Saturday. The rookie still has not made his NFL debut. The Panthers must activate him by November 6; if they don't, Brooks won't be able to play this season. Chuba Hubbard and Miles Sanders will handle most of Carolina's rushing opportunities until Brooks is healthy enough to play.

Tuesday, January 14, 4:51 PM

Minnesota Vikings quarterback Sam Darnold resurrected his career by leading the Vikings to 14 wins in 2024 while posting career-highs in passing yards (4,319) and touchdowns (35), but he came crashing down hard in losses to the Detroit Lions in Week 18 and the Los Angeles Rams in the wild-card round in which he had a combined 23 off-target throws and took 11 sacks. Darnold's future is now as unsettled as ever as he heads toward free agency in March, but ESPN's Jeremy Fowler writes that Darnold is still the top free-agent QB. The teams that Fowler has spoken with recently forecasted Darnold in the Geno Smith/Baker Mayfield weight class of contracts. Mayfield got a three-year, $100 million deal last offseason with Tampa, while Smith signed a three-year, $75 million deal before the 2023 season. Darnold tanked to end the year, but he did enough to find work as a starter somewhere else if Minnesota doesn't want him back.