SEATTLE — By the time the locker room doors opened Sunday night, Sam Darnold was at the center of a celebratory scene, cigar smoke hanging in the air as teammates swarmed him.
Hugs, cigar clippings, handshakes and pictures followed as players passed around the George Halas Trophy. Loud on the speakers was the Notorious B.I.G.’s “Going Back to Cali,” an apt soundtrack for a player whose career has traced a long arc back to California. Darnold had just delivered perhaps his finest performance on the game’s biggest stage so far, leading the Seahawks to a 31-27 win over the Los Angeles Rams with crucial throws late in the fourth quarter — a victory that sends him and Seattle to the Super Bowl at Levi’s Stadium on Feb. 8.
Cali is a recurring stop in Darnold’s story: San Clemente High School, a standout at USC, and then the Bay Area practice fields where his professional career was rebuilt. Sunday’s NFC championship felt like another reset — a reminder of the rise at USC, the stumbles with the Jets and Panthers, the career salvage in San Francisco as a backup, and the eventual resurgence that saw him earn starting opportunities with Minnesota and now Seattle.
Throughout the season Darnold has carried the weight of skeptics who questioned whether he could win big games. Critics pointed to games where he had limited throws or mixed results and suggested he benefited from others’ performances rather than carrying a team. That narrative frustrated Seahawks players and coaches — and Darnold answered it Sunday. He threw for 346 yards and three touchdowns, and the coaches leaned on him in critical moments instead of just leaning on the running game and defense to close things out.
Earlier this season Darnold struggled in matchups with the Rams, coughing up multiple interceptions and failing to consistently find the end zone, with pressure contributing to several of those turnovers. In Sunday’s rematch he reversed course: all three of his touchdown passes came when facing pressure, and he finished without an interception — a career-best performance in that regard.
“You can’t talk about the game without talking about our quarterback,” Seahawks head coach Mike McDonald said, praising Darnold for silencing doubters and making clutch throws on third down and in late-drive situations, even though he had limited practice time that week. Teammates echoed that praise. Receiver Jackson Smith-Njiva, who led Seattle with 10 catches for 153 yards and a touchdown, called Darnold “a true leader” and “a true competitor.” Safety Julian Love defended Darnold’s reputation, saying the criticism has been unfair and that Darnold showed up when it mattered.
The broader context of Darnold’s comeback has been noted by figures who saw his earlier struggles as symptoms of system and circumstance. Months after Darnold was traded from New York, Jets GM Joe Douglas voiced continued faith in his potential. Later, coaches and executives in San Francisco — including Kyle Shanahan and John Lynch — believed Darnold could still grow into a starting quarterback after he helped revive his career there. The Vikings gave him a one-year chance that helped restore his credibility, and last March he signed with Seattle as a free agent.
With this win Darnold becomes the first starting quarterback from the 2018 draft class to play in the Super Bowl, ahead of peers such as Josh Allen, Lamar Jackson and Baker Mayfield (Darnold was on the 49ers’ 2023 roster when they reached the Super Bowl but did not play). He achieved this while working in the same system that helped resurrect his career, backing up Brock Purdy in 2023, and by outdueling Matthew Stafford — who is a candidate for league MVP. He did it despite carrying an oblique injury that limited his practice time in recent weeks; when asked if he would have played after missing a full week of practice, Darnold said he didn’t think so.
For the Seahawks locker room and the city, Darnold’s journey — the long road “back to Cali” — is a shared triumph. Teammates say they believe in him and are committed to helping him through whatever comes next as he prepares for the Super Bowl.
Fan Take: Darnold’s turnaround matters because it underscores how quickly NFL fortunes can change and highlights the value of perseverance and the right fit within a system. For fans, his story is a reminder that quarterback narratives aren’t settled early and that second chances can reshape team-building and postseason expectations.
