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Shanahan ‘happy’ Darnold landed starting QB job with Vikings originally appeared on NBC Sports Bay Area
Sam Darnold’s 49ers stint was shortlived, but he made quite the impression on coach Kyle Shanahan during the 2023 NFL season.
Darnold is set to face his former coach when San Francisco squares off with the Minnesota Vikings on Sunday, with Shanahan revealing Wednesday that he thoroughly enjoyed coaching the former No. 3 overall pick last season.
“Loved having Sam here, he was an awesome guy,’ Shanahan told reporters. “He’s been that way everywhere he’s been. And we found it out personally here. But always liked Sam before he got here. Just his talent level from college and what you’d seen in NFL and was exactly as good as advertised.
“He’s such a good athlete, so tough, can make any throw. And really enjoyed working with him. I thought he got better throughout the year. He was always ready to get more opportunities in the games if something bad happened. Fortunately for Brock [Purdy] we didn’t have to do that till the last week. But it was really good having him here as a number two.”
Darnold’s lone start with the 49ers came in a Week 18 showdown against the Los Angeles Rams, as San Francisco rested many of its starters after securing the NFC’s No. 1 playoff seed.
While Darnold didn’t get much on-field work throughout the 2023 season, Shanahan still noticed plenty of growth during the quarterback’s time in the Bay.
“Yeah, I did,” Shanahan told reporters when asked if he saw Darnold make progress behind the scenes. “I think just, Sam had been in a lot of different offenses and a few different teams and stuff. I think just the more, he always could make plays and stuff, but the more he got used to what we were asking and it’s hard when you ask some people to do stuff that they haven’t done before, because sometimes you’ve got to get worse before you get better.
“But Sam came in with such a good mindset. He was so detailed in what he did, really never…
Source link : https://sports.yahoo.com/shanahan-happy-darnold-landed-starting-055659991.html
Author : NBC Sports BayArea
Publish date : 2024-09-12 05:56:59
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