Sam Darnold Won a Super Bowl But Some Still Don't Get It
Look, Sam Darnold just won a Super Bowl with the Seahawks. A literal championship. Zero turnovers across three playoff games. Yet somehow, someway, there are still people out there questioning whether he's the real deal. Welcome to being a Seattle quarterback in 2026.
The Doubters Remain Even After the Lombardi Trophy
Darnold earned his stripes this season. He went from question mark to franchise quarterback to Super Bowl champion in one year. That's not small stuff. In the postseason, he was efficient when it mattered most, made the throws when the Seahawks needed them, and kept the team out of trouble when playoff football gets tight. But Fox Sports' Henry McKenna still has him ranked No. 16 in his 2026 offseason quarterback stock market. That's a drop from No. 11 when the regular season ended. So a guy won a championship and got ranked lower. Make that make sense.
McKenna's main concern: does Darnold still have those meltdown games in him? Fair question, maybe. Darnold did finish the regular season leading the league with 20 turnovers. Six of those came in two games against the Rams, including that brutal four interception performance in the 21-19 road loss in Week 11. But here's the thing nobody talks about: the Seahawks were a long field goal away from winning that game anyway. That's how close they were.
Plenty of Quarterbacks Had Ugly Moments Too
And let's be real about something. Matthew Stafford threw three interceptions in a loss to Atlanta in Week 16. Jalen Hurts had four picks and a fumble in an overtime loss to the Chargers in Week 14. Even C.J. Stroud threw four interceptions in the first half of a playoff loss to New England. Guess what? Stafford and Hurts rank higher than Darnold on McKenna's list. Darnold actually won the Super Bowl. The contrast is wild.
The problem is that some people would rather focus on those handful of rough performances and whatever happened during his time with the Jets and Panthers. They're sleeping on everything Darnold accomplished here in Seattle. There's plenty he can clean up, no doubt. The turnover rate needs to come down. Reading pre-snap blitzes that get him into trouble needs to improve. But he's got an entire offseason to work on that as a Seahawk, not learning a new system all over again.
A Full Offseason to Build on Success
Darnold gets to train with Rashid Shaheed all summer, the receiver Seattle acquired at the trade deadline. He's got the confidence now. He's got the experience across multiple teams and systems. Most importantly, he's got proof that he can lead this offense to a championship. That should matter more than some talking head's power rankings, but welcome to the noise around being the Seahawks quarterback.
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This article was created with AI assistance and reviewed by Seattle On Tap editorial staff. Always verify information with official team sources.