In the midst of a disappointing performance in the NFC Wild Card game, Barstool Sports founder Dave Portnoy eviscerated Minnesota Vikings quarterback Sam Darnold.
Throughout the regular season, Darnold's story about a backup quarterback leading the Vikings to a 14-3 record was inspiring as the Minnesota signal-caller was able to exceed expectations and lead his team to the playoffs. .
But it was in their first playoff game against the Los Angeles Rams that the Vikings quarterback laid an egg as Darnold couldn't handle the pressure of Los Angeles' pass rush and couldn't make significant strides on offense.
Portnoy took to X, formerly Twitter, and criticized Darnold's performance that night.
Some of that anger It could have been because he made a five-leg parlay bet of $11,000 in the game, with one of the legs requiring the Vikings wide receiver to score a touchdown at any point in the game (which did not happen).
'Three weeks ago people were asking if JJ McCarthy was on the market. What a difference a couple of weeks make. Darnold looks horrible again,” Portnoy posted Monday night.
Barstool Sports' Dave Portnoy criticized Vikings quarterback Sam Darnold after his tough performance
Portnoy posted a series of tweets criticizing Darnold during their playoff loss.
Darnold was not supposed to start this season after the Vikings selected McCarthy 11th overall in the NFL Draft out of the University of Michigan. Portnoy is a Michigan alum and a big fan of the Wolverines football team.
Portnoy again took to the social media platform to criticize him later in the game.
'There was a guy literally with no one within 20 meters of him. Oh my god, Darnold sucks.
He later ridiculed Darnold once again after the Vikings quarterback was sacked, leading to defensive end Jared Verse recovering a Rams fumble that was run back for a touchdown to increase the lead. Los Angeles advantage.
Portnoy posted two more tweets during the game: one highlighting another wide receiver Darnold didn't see and another simply saying, “The Vikings folded.” I can't say I blame them.
While you could say Darnold was overwhelmed by a team playing for civic pride after a tragedy, that doesn't exactly cover how poor his play was.
Darnold completed 25 of 40 passes for just 245 yards, one touchdown, one interception and one fumble.
But it was the nine sacks Darnold took that really put the game out of reach for the Vikings.
Darnold was sacked nine times, tying a record for most sacks by a QB in a playoff game.
One of those sacks was a strip sack (above), which led to a fumble recovery for a touchdown.
Darnold's counterpart, Matthew Stafford, also struggled, but completed two touchdown passes.
Darnold is now tied with Cincinnati Bengals quarterback Joe Burrow and former Houston Oilers quarterback Warren Moon for the all-time record for most sacks by a quarterback in a game. of playoffs.
It wasn't that far off the most sacks by a QB in any NFL game, a record held by Moon and Donovan McNabb when both were sacked 12 times.
The Vikings' running game didn't fare much better, as they were led by Aaron Jones, who rushed 13 times for 48 yards.
Rams quarterback Matthew Stafford didn't fare much better in terms of passing yards (he only managed 208), but his two touchdown passes were enough to put the game out of reach.
The Rams' defense was by far the best unit of the night, with relentless pressure forcing Minnesota into three punts and two turnovers. Add to that the sack touchdown and Los Angeles can advance to the next round confident in their game on Monday night.
Next up for Los Angeles is an NFC Divisional Round matchup on the road against the Philadelphia Eagles.