The Vikings signed former Giants quarterback Daniel Jones to the practice squad

“I’m just excited to get him here,” O’Connell said. “I think there’s a short-term and a long-term conversation at every position on the roster and that’s what Kwesi (Adofo-Mensah, general manager) and his group and Rob (Brzezinski, executive vice president of football operations) are saying .” and everyone above is doing a great job. But quarterback development is a huge passion of mine, and I love getting opportunities to work with guys no matter what point in their quarterback journey they are at.”

His stop in Minnesota puts him in a quarterback room with Darnold, who once shared MetLife Stadium and the back pages of New York tabloids with Jones and was the subject of QB intrigue (and scrutiny) after the Jets traded him up in 2018 brought third place overall. Darnold played three seasons in New York and spent time with two other teams before signing a one-year, $10 million contract with the Vikings to replace Kirk Cousins ​​as the starting quarterback this season. He had his best season as a starter in Minnesota, setting a career-high 21 touchdown passes and increasing his completion percentage to 67.6% (nearly six points above his previous best) while leading the Vikings to a 9-2 start .

Darnold’s success — and the potential it brings with him for a multi-year deal in the spring when he’s a free agent — has cemented the Vikings’ reputation as something of a QB retreat, with a strong passer development coaching staff and a comprehensive Filling of position skills with players you can work with on Sundays.

“I don’t know what it’s like in New York or anything like that, but for him to come in here with this locker room, this coaching staff, just the organization as a whole, we have great people here,” Darnold said. “I’m just excited for him to be able to join this group.”

Jones could benefit from the same infrastructure, although it’s possible he doesn’t have any in-game work that could serve as evidence that the short stay in Minnesota helped him reform his game. O’Connell said he has spoken to each of the four quarterbacks on the Vikings’ roster – Darnold, Nick Mullens, Brett Rypien and McCarthy – about the Jones move, which will not involve any immediate changes to the Vikings’ depth chart.