The Vikings have provided a platform unlike any Sam Darnold had before, and the former Jets draft pick is thriving.

When the schedule is loaded with tough games at the start of the schedule, it sends a message to the team that it must be ready to compete hard as the season gets

If you're deducing things as you read along, you've already come to the realization that Jayden Daniels, Will Levis, Deshaun Watson, Daniel Jones, Russell Wilson, Caleb Williams and Jacoby Brissett are all ranked ahead of Darnold. By the numbers, it makes absolutely no sense.

It might not look good now, but there is hope for a successful future. This is what the three rookie quarterbacks drafted in the first round — Chicago’s Caleb Williams, Washington’s Jayden Daniels and Denver’s Bo Nix — need to understand as they go through their predictable struggles.

The Houston Texans defense will see an unlikely opponent in Sam Darnold when they face the Minnesota Vikings.Darnold is stepping in as the starter after No. 10 overall pick J.J. McCarthy suffered a season-ending knee injury back in training camp.