Vikings' Kevin O'Connell comments on Sam Darnold's performance vs. Rams

Same old Sam? Not quite, at least according to Kevin O'Connell.

A sensational season for Sam Darnold and the Minnesota Vikings came to a screeching halt Monday night, losing 27-9 to the Rams in an NFL playoff blowout. A "screeching halt" might not be the best way to describe the loss; Rather, the Vikings ran into a brick wall of defense, as the Rams sacked Darnold nine times in the tilt.

That number doesn't just make principal Ed Rooney blush, but it also tied an NFL playoff record for sacks in a single game.

That kind of pressure – both physical and mental – is what separates the playoff-winning quarterbacks from the ones on planes to Cancun this time of year. That said, Vikings head coach O'Connell offered a fair assessment of Darnold's performance in the loss after the game.

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"Those moments where you're holding that ball, and your reaction is to try to make a play – we can't talk out of both sides of our mouth cause he sure as heck made a lot of plays doing that this year – but I think that's part of the growth.

"Remember, this guy's 27 years old or whatever he is. I think he has a foundation now of both the things you do at the quarterback position to have success and things you have to learn the hard way."

Darnold was also self-critical about the loss.

"I feel like I left a couple throws out there that I could be better on," Darnold said postgame. "… Just too many mistakes on my end."

And as far as the sacks and pressure goes, Darnold said it's all on him to keep moving and make plays. The passer took full accountability on his performance.

"There were a lot of sacks today that I was responsible for, where I was just holding onto the football and taken sacks, where I could have just dirted it at someone's feet or thrown it over their head."

Sam Darnold stats

Darnold finished the NFL wild-card matchup vs. the Rams going 25-of-40 passing with one touchdown and one interception. He also fumbled once, and it was costly, as Rams defender Jared Verse picked it up for a scoop and score.

The journeyman passer, 27, had a renaissance year in the NFL for the Vikings. He completed 66.2% of his passes for 4,319 yards and 35 touchdowns with a 102.5 passer rating, all career highs. He also threw 12 interceptions, third highest in his career.

This article originally appeared on USA TODAY: Kevin O'Connell assesses Sam Darnold's performance vs. Rams