Sam Darnold

Sam Darnold completed 22-of-28 passes for 347 yards and five touchdowns in the Vikings’ 42-21, Week 14 win over the Falcons.

It almost goes without saying that both the yards and scores were new career highs, though you can never be too sure with how well Darnold has been playing in Minnesota. Facing a revved up Falcons pass rush, Darnold focused on the basics: Relentlessly targeting Justin Jefferson and Jordan Addison. Those top-two wideouts combined for 15/265/5 of Darnold’s production. Not too shabby. The biggest strikes were 49 and 52-yard touchdown passes where Addison and Jefferson, respectively, either took advantage of a coverage bust or put the nearest defender in a blender. Darnold has now gone four straight games without a pick. He’s still taking too many sacks, but he’s also rising above shaky pass protection. In a word, he’s been a star. The Bears are a stiffer Week 15 test, but it’s become impossible to leave Darnold outside the fantasy top 12 even with bye weeks over.