Sam Darnold helping the Seattle Seahawks win a Super Bowl helped change a major narrative about flamed-out quarterbacks never being able to truly resurrect their careers.
And the San Francisco 49ers, as many will know and even Darnold acknowledged, helped aid him in that process after a disappointing career that spanned from being drafted No. 3 overall back in 2018 to when he signed with the Niners as Brock Purdy's backup in 2023.
Now, it seems as if plenty of teams across the league are trying to replicate Darnold's post-San Francisco success with castoff signal-callers.
NFL.com's Jeffri Chadiha just compiled a list of quarterbacks who could be "the next Sam Darnold" after their respective careers appeared to be heading down the tank. Chadiha brought up a valid point with regard to such hurlers, having written, "It all depends on timing, perseverance and how much faith the right team is willing to invest in a reclamation project."
Not surprisingly, the five QBs the analyst listed are ones whom many a fan thought was a total bust:
- Daniel Jones, Indianapolis Colts
- Kyler Murray, Minnesota Vikings
- Mac Jones, San Francisco 49ers
- Tua Tagovailoa, Atlanta Falcons
- Malik Willis, Miami Dolphins
We'll get to Jones in a second (he is of relevance here), but it's worthwhile to acknowledge how context impacts a player's chances of flaming out. Jones was pretty dreadful with the New York Giants before shipping off to Indy and finding pre-injury success there in 2025, while Murray never quite put things together out in Arizona after being selected No. 1 overall in 2019.
Perhaps Darnold's post-49ers team, the Vikings where he truly broke out, can aid in Murray's own reclamation project.
Back to Jones, whom many saw as a prime offseason trade candidate in light of a previous QB shortage and weak NFL Draft class at the position. Helping the Niners go 5-3 amid a turf-toe injury to Purdy worked wonders for the former's career, yet the flooding of other reclamation QBs and the copycat nature of teams to find the next Darnold all but iced any chance San Francisco could trade its backup signal-caller this offseason.
A free agent in 2027, Jones is worth the watch wherever he winds up.
All told, though, Darnold's lone year in the Bay Area (and his post-49ers success) helped convince teams that landing a stud quarterback via the draft and making him a franchise centerpiece isn't the only way to go, nor is it required to engineer some blockbuster trade for an established star.
Sometimes, finding a castoff and giving him the right environment is all that's needed.