Vikings outduel Broncos to land Sam Darnold in free agency

The Denver Broncos' options at quarterback through free agency are beginning to dwindle and one that the team reportedly had interest in has chosen to instead sign with the Minnesota Vikings. The deal will become official with the start of the new league year on Wednesday.

The Vikings were looking for another option after Kirk Cousins came to terms on a huge deal with the Atlanta Falcons. The deal for Sam Darnold is reportedly for one year and about $10 million. That was apparently better than whatever the Broncos were offering.

The Broncos would probably like to find a veteran quarterback in free agency who is an upgrade over Jarrett Stidham, but it's not a great sign when one of the guys they were interested in chose the Vikings instead. Perhaps it was a money thing but more likely, Darnold saw a better path to being a starter in Minnesota and a better chance to hang onto that starting job based on what the team is planning in the draft.

The Broncos must now turn their attention to the remaining market but the options are becoming slim, especially after Jameis Winston, a name many connected to Denver due to his previous relationship with Sean Payton, agreed to a deal with the Cleveland Browns.

Here's what that leaves:

Ryan Tannehill
Drew Lock
Mason Rudolph
Jimmy Garoppolo

Beyond those names, the market is extremely bleak with career backups. Lock is unlikely to return to Denver which would leave Tannehill, Rudolph and Garoppolo. Do any of those guys move the needle over Stidham? Probably not by much, if at all.

It's unfortunate that the team was unable to secure Darnold as he is still young, is coming out of a successful situation with the San Francisco 49ers and still has some upside. That is the perfect bridge QB to get the team to a rookie quarterback, which the Broncos are all but certain to draft at this point.