If you would have told me a half-decade ago that Sam Darnold would play for a Super Bowl, I would have finally absolved the New York Jets of the infamous butt-fumble, which has cursed that sorry franchise for far too long. Since that doomed 2012 season, the Jets have had just one winning season, went through a litany of quarterbacks and coaches and still can’t find their guy.
Darnold needed to leave New York to get to being one of the top quarterbacks in the NFL. He moved around to quite a few teams before he found a home in Seattle. Now, at the peak of his career, he’s well on his way to his first Super Bowl win. The journey to the Super Bowl for Darnold was unlike any other. Here’s how Darnold went from the lowest of lows, to the highest of highs.
Seeing ghosts: The haunting of New York Jets football
Darnold was taken with the No. 3 overall pick in 2018 and after his rookie year, it started rough. He passed for less than 3,000 yards as a rookie with 15 interceptions and 17 touchdown passes. The Jets won just four games. His second season was a bit more promising with the Jets winning seven games, but Darnold’s stats just never lived up to being a top five pick.
It was during his second season, the soundbite of the season turned into a moniker of the early years of Darnold’s career. It was during a Monday Night Football game against the New England Patriots that a hot mic caught Darnold saying he was 'seeing ghosts', amid a four-interception outing.
In 2019 on Monday Night Football vs. the Patriots, Sam Darnold was heard saying he was “seeing ghosts” thanks to New England’s pass rush 👻
— ESPN Insights (@ESPNInsights) February 3, 2026
In that game, Darnold threw three INT and posted a 0.7 Total QBR against the Patriots blitz. pic.twitter.com/AJtlMBj1ZL
That phrase literally haunted him the rest of his tenure with the New York Jets. During his three seasons in New York, he had three losing seasons, two seasons with fewer than five wins and two head coaches. It’s fair to criticize Darnold because he didn’t help his case either. He had just under 8,100 yards and had nearly as many interceptions as he did touchdown passes.
After three years, the Jets cut their losses. Turning to Zach Wilson was an even worse decision. When you look at what the two quarterbacks have done since – Wilson has also been traded from New York – the Jets should regret turning on Darnold before his rookie contract was even exhausted.
Looking for a new home: A run in the NFC provided very little hope for Darnold’s turnaround
Darnold landed with the Carolina Panthers after he left New York, and it was as frustrating as you would expect. The Panthers went through a regime change with Matt Rhule jumping from Baylor to the NFL ranks. He lasted just over two seasons. Darnold started 17 games for the Panthers and it was reminiscent of his time in New York.
In fact, things got so bad in Carolina, Darnold was benched for Baker Mayfield, who was taken No. 1 overall in the same NFL Draft as Darnold. In those 18 games, he threw for over 3,600 passing yards and had 16 touchdowns and 16 interceptions.
Another brief stint San Francisco taught Darnold a valuable lesson. It was the first time in his career he landed with a team and he wasn’t expected to start. Brock Purdy was the signal caller, but landing in San Francisco set Darnold up for this season. He went to Kyle Shanahan’s quarterback rehab program, where he met Klint Kubiak, who’s now his offensive coordinator in Seattle.
The one year in Minnesota that changed it all
The 2024 offseason changed in ways Darnold never would have guessed. After spending a season as a backup quarterback, the Minnesota Vikings provided the perfect opportunity for him to revive his career. J.J. McCarthy was just drafted, but a preseason knee injury ended his rookie season before it ever got going. Darnold had another chance.
What transpired was one of the best NFL comeback stories. Darnold led the Vikings to a 14-win season and playoff appearance. He threw for over 30 touchdowns, which was a career-high at that time. That season proved that Darnold wasn’t washed, he just needed the right system.
Kevin O’Connell is just as much of a quarterback guru as Shanahan is, so landing with O’Connell helped Darnold regain his confidence. Which is exactly why he was able to carry that success over Seattle. But why did Minnesota do away with Darnold so fast?
You could speculate a lot here, but the way the last two games went, Minnesota couldn’t get over it; one of those contests cost them the No. 1 seed and the other ended their dream season in the Wild Card round. Maybe Darnold wasn’t worth paying when he couldn’t perform under the spotlight – at least, that was the argument.
Maybe the team was really looking forward to the McCarthy era that they weren’t going to overspend on a quarterback. Whatever the reason was, it ultimately cost Minnesota one of their best quarterbacks in recent years.
Minnesota’s trash became Seattle’s treasure
John Schneider could have done nothing else this past offseason and won Executive of the Year for signing Darnold alone. He could have settled with Geno Smith for another mediocre year, but he took the big swing and added Klint Kubiak to take this offense to the next level.
Darnold already played with one of the best receivers in the NFL in Justin Jefferson, so elevating JSN was never going to be an issue. Seattle braved the gauntlet of the NFC West to rise to the No. 1 seed. Then, Darnold went on a playoff run that required him to essentially win the division again.
Everything he came up short of in Minnesota last year, Darnold accomplished this year with the Seahawks. That’s a quarterback who evolved from looking like a bust in New York, to being on the verge of winning a Super Bowl in year eight.
Darnold took the path less traveled to become one of the league’s most respected quarterbacks. He was written off after he left New York. In the last two years alone, he proved he wasdeserving of his top-3 NFL Draft selection. He just needed time. If Darnold wins a Super Bowl this year, it would be the ultimate redemption story.