Even if Darnold had played better and Minnesota had won a much closer game, I don't see them marching into Philly and beating up on the Eagles and while L.A. will likely give them a very competitive, hard-fought game, they don't win next week, either IMHO. Darnold's biggest development issue is that he never evolved from college-to-pros his ability to improvise or not panic in the pocket or try to run/scramble if his first-or-second reads aren't there. Kirk Herbstreit pointed out that mental flaw in his game when he was a junior at USC and he's never been able to correct it. I think this sort of season proved what Sam Darnold's sort of ceiling would be with a great, supporting cast and that he's not a reliable QB in big games or the post-season and O'Connell kinda proved that 2022 wasn't this random event because he had a much better, proven commodity in Kirk Cousins and still lost to NYG at home. I also think Darnold played with a bit more of an edge and seemed more focused, determined and less mistake-prone earlier in the season and by the end of the season, maybe he got a little too comfortable in his position and forgot he could still lose this starting job and while he'll never admit it, the cumulative pressure finally got to him.