Sam Darnold entered the year as the San Francisco 49ers' new backup quarterback after five unfruitful seasons with the New York Jets and Carolina Panthers. His career outlook at the time looked bleak.

After one season with the San Francisco 49ers, Sam Darnold left for a breakout 2024 campaign with the Minnesota Vikings. He parlayed that success into a lucrative contract with the Seattle Seahawks, where he will now face his former team twice a year.

You can learn a lot from a kid. Just ask Sam Darnold. On Thursday, the Seattle Seahawks’ new $100.5 million quarterback who was once viewed as a first-round bust was asked at his introductory press conference about his unexpected upward career trajectory: How did he finally unlock the potential that made him the No.

Quarterback Sam Darnold was introduced by the Seattle Seahawks on Thursday, two days after agreeing to a three-year, $100.5 million free-agent deal with the team. Darnold had the best season of his career going into free agency,