Scoggins: Vikings’ Sam Darnold sounds confident ahead of NFC playoff game vs. Rams. Will he seem that way Monday?

Seven days separated two visuals that could not have been more in contrast if you hung a portrait of Quasimodo next to the Mona Lisa.

There was Sam Darnold, after defeating the Packers, hoisted atop teammates' shoulders, doused in water and celebrating another magnificent performance by performing an awkward dance move that involved waving his arms.

And there was Sam Darnold, too, airmailing passes at Detroit’s Ford Field, a quarterback who appeared nervous and uncertain in the biggest game of the season.

Same guy. One week apart. When people talk about the highs and lows of sports, no better example exists than what the Vikings quarterback experienced in a pair of performances that leave a moon-sized question mark hanging over the team heading into the playoffs.

What the heck will Sam look like Monday night against the Los Angeles Rams?

Will he be Sensational Sam? Or Motown Sam? Or something between those two extremes?

Truth is, we have no idea. Nobody does. Not even Kevin O’Connell, though the Vikings head coach is the person most responsible for helping Darnold regroup and move on.

“He’s got a level of mental toughness to just be consistent about his routine,” O’Connell said. “The mental toughness to apply some hard coaching or apply some personal responsibility for things that maybe didn’t go his way in one game. If you look at the sample size of his whole season, Sam Darnold is a huge reason why we won 14 games.”

That is undisputed. So is the importance of Darnold’s response to the Detroit debacle.

If his weekly chat with reporters Thursday is any indication, Darnold seems to be in a good spot mentally after processing all that went wrong in Detroit.

“It’s just a matter of me being able to trust the throws,” he said. “Trust my feet, trust my eyes and just letting it rip. That’s the biggest thing. When I see the throw there, just being able to let it rip and don’t think twice about it.”

Darnold also mentioned the need for him and everyone else in the locker room to take that field with a “clear mind.”

What happened against the Lions is done. Can’t change it. The Vikings’ challenge is to not allow that game to defeat them twice by carrying negative emotional baggage forward.

O’Connell purposely shifted the conversation about Darnold on Thursday by answering a question about his quarterback by noting, “Our entire operation needed to have a reflection.”

Fair or not, the spotlight will shine brightest on Darnold, who is guaranteed only one more game in a Vikings uniform. His first playoff experience likely could shape whatever happens next in his career, whether that’s in Minnesota or somewhere else.

This is a big spot for him, though he came across as engaging and relaxed as he has all season in his media session.

He recalled returning an interception for a touchdown in high school as a sophomore linebacker. “They ran a screen, and I sniffed it out,” he said.

He credited his dad, a plumber, for teaching him the importance of keeping a consistent routine in a job. He also noted that his dad occasionally sends him photos of random homes with Vikings flags displayed outside in their hometown in California.

“It’s a pretty fun deal,” he said. “To be part of something like this is very special.”

The opportunity is not lost on him. The Vikings won 14 games this season. They are a good team that laid an egg in Detroit. That doesn’t mean their playoff hopes are ruined.

Darnold acknowledged that players often solidify or define their legacies in the postseason “50 years down the line.” That’s the wide-angle view. The task for Monday is narrower in his first postseason game as a starter.

He must handle the big-stage pressure and emotion. O’Connell plays a role in that, too. The head coach needs to compile a menu of plays in the opening script that give Darnold the best chance to establish a rhythm, gain confidence and prevent doubt from creeping into his head.

Then it’s up to Darnold to follow his own advice and let it rip.