Yahoo Sports’ Jason Fitz and NFL reporter Jori Epstein break down what’s next as Minnesota opts not to use the franchise tag on the veteran quarterback. Hear the full conversation on “Inside Coverage” – and subscribe on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, YouTube or wherever you listen.

Everybody today is saying Sam Darnold not tagged, but they’re still working on a deal.

Make that make sense for me, Joey.

I think when you look at the quarterback franchise tag, $40 million I don’t know that the Vikings feel like, given how Sam Darnold ended his season, they are sure they want him to be their guy and thus will give him $40 million.

I also think that the Vikings are weighing, well.

Are we 70% sure we want Sam Darnold against JJ McCarthy?

Are we 60%?

Also, when do you think JJ is getting that opportunity because you don’t want to be paying $40 million to your backup.

There are a lot of musical chairs going on here, but I think to me, the fact that they did not franchise to him, if I’m JJ McCarthy, I’m excited about it because I’m saying, OK, they’re not so committed to me not starting this year that they’re willing to give a guy 40 million all hitting the cap this year.

But if I’m everyone else in the Vikings, I’m still like, well.

I’m asking Sam to say to, hey, once you get your deal out there, come back and give me a chance to counter.

Sam Darnold has already lived through in his career what it is like to not have the resources, not have the coaching, and not have the environment around you.

And so I think he’s going to have to say, do I want to make my big money that I haven’t made yet because he didn’t get a big veteran deal?

Or do I want to go in the place where I feel like I can most likely win, maybe bet on myself short term again, but also there’s a lot of risk with that because From November to now his cost fell.

Sam Darnold is going to make way more guaranteed money over the course of multi-years if he goes somewhere else, because there’s just not a lot of options.

This is not a good year to need a quarterback, if you’re Sam Darnold, and you can get, let’s say, 1 year, $30 million and guaranteed.

Um, from the Vikings with a possible 2nd year, but not guaranteed, kind of like the Daniel Jones contract we saw where he had 40 guaranteed for 2 years, but nothing after, like, the next other two years could be completely voided if they wanted to, which they did.

Would you rather that or 2 years 50 with the Raiders?

Uh, I would take the Vikings.

I’ve already made enough money that my entire family tree is, is impacted by it.

So now it becomes about partially about money, but also partially about where can I continue, especially when I’ve had so many miserable years with so many different teams.

I’ve floated from team to team to team.

I finally have a coach and a coaching staff that gets me.

I want to play there.

If I’m Sam Darnold, it’s gonna take a lot to pry me away to go to an organization that’s in dysfunction.

Now, if for example, the Pittsburgh Steelers call me, that’s a much different situation.

If you tell me that I’m going to a place that has a coach, I believe is there for the long haul with an organization that’s run intelligently, and I feel like there’s a chance we can win a bunch of football games, then yeah, like-minded, like-minded, I’ll go.

But if you’re telling me that I got to go to one of these teams that absolutely sucks and is in the beginning of a rebuild, not a chance I’m doing it.

Yeah, no, I, I think that’s interesting.

I think the other question you have to ask is, what if you’re guaranteed to start first you’ll maybe start if JJ is not healthy.

I’m gonna believe that I got my chance last year.

I won that job last year.

I was gonna start anyway, going into that last year.

Competitor in me is gonna believe that I can, I can hold him off for another year.