Sam Darnold’s Unlikely Rise: From NFL Journeyman to Super Bowl Starter
In a league where second chances are rare and third chances are practically unheard of, Sam Darnold is making the most out of what amounts to a fourth shot at proving he belongs. The eighth-year quarterback, now with his fifth NFL team, is leading the Seattle Seahawks to their first Super Bowl appearance in over a decade - and doing it with a calm confidence that suggests he’s finally found the right fit.
This isn’t a reclamation project anymore. This is a quarterback who’s grown through the fire and emerged with the poise and precision of a player who’s seen it all - because, frankly, he has.
Seattle didn’t sign Darnold hoping he might become something. They signed him because they saw what he already was: a quarterback coming off a quietly productive season in Minnesota, where he threw for over 4,000 yards and 54 touchdowns. The Vikings, meanwhile, opted to roll the dice on rookie JJ McCarthy, a move that’s looking more questionable by the day as Darnold prepares to face the New England Patriots in Super Bowl LX at Levi’s Stadium.
As Kyle Brandt put it on Good Morning Football, “Guys on their fifth team do not start Super Bowls.” He’s right - it’s only happened three times in NFL history, and not since Chris Chandler led the 1998 Falcons.
But Darnold’s journey isn’t just rare. It’s remarkable.
A Career That Almost Wasn’t
The California native and USC alum entered the league with sky-high expectations as the No. 3 overall pick in the 2018 NFL Draft. He made history right away, becoming the youngest quarterback to start a season opener since the AFL-NFL merger.
But his first NFL pass? A pick-six.
That moment, oddly enough, would become symbolic of his early years: flashes of promise clouded by turnovers, inconsistency, and a lack of support.
His time with the Jets was a rollercoaster - and not the fun kind. He battled mononucleosis as a rookie, worked under the ill-fated tenure of head coach Adam Gase, and played behind an offensive line that often left him running for his life.
Over three seasons, he threw 39 interceptions in 39 games. And then came the infamous “seeing ghosts” moment on Monday Night Football, a soundbite that unfairly became his calling card.
When Robert Saleh took over in New York, Darnold was out. And for most quarterbacks, that would’ve been the end of the line.
Reinvention, One Stop at a Time
But Darnold wasn’t done. Carolina gave him another shot in 2021, and he started hot - three straight wins - before the wheels came off in a 4-7 finish. By 2022, he was backing up Baker Mayfield, the very quarterback drafted two spots ahead of him in 2018.
Then came San Francisco. Darnold was brought in as a backup to Brock Purdy, the 2022 Draft’s “Mr.
Irrelevant.” He made just one start - a meaningless game after the 49ers had clinched a playoff berth - but what happened behind the scenes may have changed everything.
“That year was incredible,” Darnold told the Richard Sherman Podcast. “To be able to learn football from Kyle [Shanahan], from that entire staff that was there... it was just a great experience.”
That experience, learning under one of the league’s most respected offensive minds, helped Darnold reset. He wasn’t trying to play “hero ball” anymore.
He wasn’t trying to outrun defenders who were faster, stronger, and better prepared. He was learning to play within the structure of a system - and it clicked.
“I think just that mindset of trying to make a play got me in a little bit of trouble early in my career,” Darnold admitted this week. “In college, I was going one to my second progression and then making a play outside.
In the NFL, it’s not that easy. You’ve got guys who are 6'4", 6'5", running 4.4s chasing you down.
I’m not fast enough to get away from them anymore.”
The Breakout in Minnesota
That newfound maturity paid off in Minnesota, where Darnold finally put together the kind of season that matched his pre-draft potential. He built a 1,533-yard connection with Justin Jefferson, reigniting an offense that had grown stagnant. It wasn’t enough to carry the Vikings deep into the playoffs - they were one-and-done - but it was enough to put Darnold back on the radar.
Seattle took notice. And this year, he’s picked up right where he left off, forming a dynamic partnership with Jaxon Smith-Njigba, who led the league with 1,793 receiving yards.
The chemistry is real. The confidence is back.
And the Seahawks are one win away from the mountaintop.
The Last Man Standing from the Class of 2018
Here’s the twist no one saw coming: Sam Darnold, the quarterback once mocked for “seeing ghosts,” could be the first from the 2018 Draft class to start - and potentially win - a Super Bowl.
That same class included Baker Mayfield, Josh Allen, Lamar Jackson, and Josh Rosen. Of those, Allen and Jackson have had the most success - three MVPs between them, multiple playoff appearances, and several deep postseason runs.
But neither has reached the Super Bowl. All three of their AFC Championship losses came at the hands of Patrick Mahomes.
This was supposed to be the year one of them broke through. Instead, it’s Darnold, the forgotten man of that draft, who’s standing on the sport’s biggest stage.
“I have a ton of confidence in myself,” Darnold said. “I’ve always believed in myself.
But there was always doubt, you know, that kind of crept in. I think I’d be lying if I said there wasn’t.”
Now, that doubt is fading. And the quarterback who was once cast aside by four franchises is one win away from rewriting his story - not as a cautionary tale, but as one of the most improbable comeback arcs the NFL has seen in years.
From USC to New York, Carolina to San Francisco, Minneapolis to Seattle - Sam Darnold’s road has been anything but smooth. But it’s brought him full circle, back to California, for the biggest game of his life.
And this time, he’s not seeing ghosts. He’s chasing glory.