The Seattle Seahawks made it clear who their 2025 starter is and it shouldn’t be a surprise. Seahawks coach Mike Macdonald knocked any notion that Sam Darnold wouldn’t be starting this upcoming season. Add that to the list of pressure that Darnold will have to endure in his first season with his new team.
"No, you guys are crazy," Macdonald said, during an interview on Seattle Sports, 710-AM. "I respect that you've got to ask it, but it's just a crazy question. It's just not going to happen. Sam's our starting quarterback."
It’s good to know you’re the guy, but that means you have to once again prove Macdonald made the right decision. The Seahawks did draft Jalen Milroe in the third round in April, alluding to a pending quarterback battle. But Seattle might be interested in using him more as a gadget player rather than quarterback, at least his rookie season.
Milroe could very well be a player that ends up like Geno Smith, too, that waits his turn. Which could be sooner rather than later. Especially if Darnold doesn’t live up to the hype after his standout season with Minnesota.
Seahawks shutdown QB battle, adding more pressure for Sam Darnold to perform this season
For what it’s worth, there’s not really a quarterback worth having a battle over in this quarterback room. Milroe showed he’s far from an NFL starter and Drew Lock is an emergency option rather than starter. With those options, it’s a no-brainer that Darnold is the guy.
The good thing is with the Seahawks, Darnold actually has a chance to truly fulfill his own redemption story. While you could argue he did that last season, but what makes NFL players good is their consistency. Darnold could shut down any notion that he’s not ready to lead a franchise with a strong 2025 season.
The Seahawks are giving him every opportunity to lead this team to success after Smith was the ideal bridge option. Smith had a redemption story of his own with the Seahawks and now he’s leading the Las Vegas Raiders. Darnold could be the next Seahawks quarterback to rejuvenate their NFL career.
Seattle put all their faith in Darnold taking that next step. Right now, Darnold is just a tad above average, but he’s only had one season where he looked like a true NFL starter. The reality is the quarterback market isn’t great. Seattle took a gamble on Darnold.
They believe in him and they think he can get them back into contention in the NFC. Remember, Darnold isn’t on a long term deal in Seattle so his job to prove he’s worth it isn’t necessarily done yet. The Seahawks are giving him every opportunity to reclaim his legacy.
Macdonald naming Darnold the starter does nothing more than prove that Seattle is trusting him to play as well as he did last year. Don’t let the $100.5 million price tag fool you, Darnold is still auditioning and this season he could earn himself the long term gig.