Sam Darnold did nearly everything right in a renaissance season, resurrecting his career as a starter while pushing Minnesota to one of the NFL's best records. A deep playoff run was the expected next step.

As Vikings QB Sam Darnold's dream season sputtered to a close Monday night in a playoff loss to the Rams, he now heads toward free agency with his future as unsettled as ever.

What a difference a couple of weeks make. The Minnesota Vikings went from a Super Bowl contending, 14-game winner playing for the NFC North title with the conference's No. 1 seed and a wild-card bye on the line -- before Week 18's 31-9 defeat by the Detroit Lions -- to an early playoff exit because of a 27-9 loss to the Los Angeles Rams .