Sam Darnold is just a week away from playing in his first career Super Bowl, as he leads the Seattle Seahawks to Santa Clara, California, to face the New England Patriots. After tough stints with the New York Jets and the Carolina Panthers, it would have been hard to imagine Darnold preparing for such a monumental game a few years ago. However, after time with the San Francisco 49ers, the Minnesota Vikings, and now the Seahawks, times have certainly changed for the No. 3 overall pick in the 2018 NFL Draft.
Several years removed from his time with Gang Green and Carolina, Darnold reflects on all the struggles as “part of my journey.”
“I think just being able to handle it at this point in my career, too, I feel like, even mentally, I handle it a little differently internally than I used to. Because I realize it is part of the journey and it is part of who I am,” Darnold said on Friday during an appearance on *The Dan Patrick Show*.
He added, “I paid a little bit more attention to it. I invested a little more thought into what happened in the past. Like, ‘OK, I threw this pick against this coverage back in 2019, I’m not going to do that again.’ It’s like, no, sometimes mistakes happen. You learn from it, and you don’t want to make the same mistakes again, but sometimes throughout your career, especially if it’s a long career, those things are going to happen.”
Darnold’s early career was challenging. He went 13-25 during his three seasons in New York, which were marred by injury and inconsistent play before the Jets eventually traded him to Carolina. His struggles continued through two seasons with the Panthers before he began to turn things around with the 49ers.
“Just being able to move on and learn from those experiences, but move on. And the days in New York, the days in Carolina, those were part of my journey, and they’re part of my experience, and I loved every single part of it,” Darnold explained.
“Yeah, there were some lows that sucked, I’m not gonna lie to ya, and that’s part of it though. I learned so much from that, and I’m able to move on. It’s funny, after every single game we lost, or things that didn’t go well, I was able to wake up the next day and see the sun rise and go into the building and see my teammates and have fun with my coaches.”
“That’s a part of life, and I think being able to realize that at this point in my career, it allows you to take it one day at a time and enjoy every single little moment that you get with your teammates, because as we all say, we’re never with the same team year-in, year-out. You may be with some similar guys if you stick with the same team, but there’s never all 70 that are the same throughout a season, so you try to enjoy it while you can.”
Over the past two seasons, Darnold has posted an impressive 28-6 record. This year, during the regular season, he threw for 4,048 yards and 25 touchdowns, showcasing the growth and maturity that have brought him to the brink of Super Bowl glory.
https://nypost.com/2026/02/01/sports/seahawks-sam-darnold-has-fresh-perspective-on-jets-panthers-failure/
