Sam Darnold’s Super Bowl run doesn’t completely change narrative — He must beat Patriots

Many times this season, Seattle Seahawks quarterback Sam Darnold has found himself in the fatal flaw crosshairs. But an insane statistic tells a different story. However, despite the Super Bowl run, Sam Darnold can’t completely change the narrative unless he beats the Patriots.

First, let’s look at what Darnold has accomplished over the last two seasons. He has a regular-season record of 27-6. And his playoff mark stands at 2-1. How many quarterbacks in today’s NFL would love to have those numbers? Even some elite ones.

But the cold, hard truth is the Super Bowl doesn’t forgive. Getting there is nice. But just showing up doesn’t make a quarterback legendary. Winning does.

Sam Darnold is still fighting against history

To be certain, winning doesn’t necessarily solve everything. It used to. For the first 19 Super Bowls, winning set a quarterback apart. Bart Starr, Joe Namath, Len Dawson, Johnny Unitas, Roger Staubach, Bob Griese, Terry Bradshaw, Ken Stabler, Jim Plunkett, Joe Montana, and Joe Theismann.

Not a dud in the bunch.

And then Jim McMahon stepped into the ring of honor with the Bears in 1985. McMahon never threw for more than 2,400 yards in a season. He made one Pro Bowl. The Bears’ defense was the biggest reason for that Super Bowl title.

Other quarterbacks who didn’t cement their name as legends with a win included Jeff Hostetler, Trent Dilfer, Brad Johnson, and Nick Foles. But it’s a short list.

However, the other list is more glaring.

Getting to the Super Bowl doesn’t mean you’ve made it

Here’s a subjective list of losing quarterbacks you may not even remember being in the Super Bowl.

Vince Ferragamo (1979)
David Woodley (1982)
Tony Eason (1985)
Stan Humphries (1994)
Neil O’Donnell (1995)
Chris Chandler (1998)
Rich Gannon (2002)
Jake Delhomme (2003)
Rex Grossman (2006)
Colin Kaepernick (2012)
Jimmy Garoppolo (2019)

How shocking would it be to add Sam Darnold to this list? Not shocking at all.

Now, to be fair to Darnold, he’s 28 years old. He could be around for another five to eight years, easy. And he could make it back to the Super Bowl.

However, only four quarterbacks in Super Bowl history have lost in their first appearance, made it back, and won. That would be:

Len Dawson (lost 1966 and won in 1969)
Bob Griese (lost in 1971 and won in 1972 and 1973)
John Elway (lost in 1986, 1987, 1989, but won in 1997 and 1998)
Jalen Hurts (lost in 2022 and won in 2024)

So, it doesn’t bode well for Darnold if he loses this game.

Another problem for the Sam Darnold narrative

It may be hard to find a quarterback who had a worse start to his NFL career, played for five different teams, and then made it to the Super Bowl. The point is, Darnold has been followed by a negative cloud ever since he left the Jets.

And the funny thing is, the cloud grew bigger when he began to succeed. After a 14-2 start in 2024 with the Vikings, many still questioned whether Darnold could get it done when it mattered most. And he failed, in an epic sense, in the last two Vikings games of that season.

This year, as the Seahawks kept piling up victories, Darnold’s naysayers repeated their same mantra. “When it matters most, he will fail,” they have said, almost like reading from a teleprompter.

Darnold threw for 60 touchdowns with 26 interceptions over the last two seasons. He passed for over 8,000 yards. In two playoff games, he has thrown for 470 yards and four touchdowns. He hasn’t thrown a pick. His passer rating is 122.4.

What more could he do? Having to ask that question is why he must beat the Patriots.

What will the critics say if the Seahawks lose?

There is a small window for some praise if Darnold balls out, throws for well over 300 yards with three or four touchdowns, and has no turnovers. But with these two defenses, a high-scoring shootout just doesn’t seem to be in the cards.

And even with that type of performance, critics will find a way. They’ll point to one snippet of the game and say, “Darnold didn’t get it done.” Commentators love their point of view. Given a chance, they will shred the player instead of admitting they’re wrong.

The only way for Darnold to make this work is by winning the game. But there’s good news in that. Darnold could have the same stat line he put up against the 49ers in the Divisional Round, and he will be hailed as a champion. In that game, the Seahawks’ defense dominated while Darnold cruised to 12-for-17 passing with 124 yards and a touchdown.

In a win, that’s enough.

Of course, there’s even a window for criticism if Darnold plays poorly in a win. If he turns the ball over three times, has a low completion percentage, takes four or five sacks, and the Seahawks somehow win, his naysayers will still have their ammunition.

However, Darnold will have the Lombardi Trophy. And it’s a great silencer.

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