Seahawks Open Up Checkbook, Sign Sam Darnold as New Starting QB

Minnesota Vikings quarterback Sam Darnold (14) in action during the NFL football game against the New York Giants, Sunday, Sept. 8, 2024, in East Rutherford. The Vikings won 28-6. (Christopher Szagola/Cal Sport Media)

As had been speculated since the team surprisingly traded former starter Geno Smith to the Las Vegas Raiders on March 7, the Seattle Seahawks wasted little time inking a successor under center, luring Pro Bowl signal caller Sam Darnold to the Pacific Northwest to kick off free agency.

According to Ian Rapoport of NFL Network, the Seahawks used Buccaneers quarterback Baker Mayfield’s contract as a blueprint during negotiations with Darnold, ultimately agreeing to terms on a three-year, $100.5 million contract. While more details will come to light down the line, he’s set to earn $55 million in guarantees as part of the contract, a strong agreement that suggests he’s viewed as more than a one-year stop gap.

Originally drafted third overall by the Jets in 2018 NFL Draft, Darnold struggled mightily in three seasons in East Rutherford, throwing 45 touchdowns and 39 interceptions with a dismal 59.8 percent completion percentage. Becoming the latest quarterback to be jettisoned by the franchise, he was traded to the Panthers prior to the 2021 season and started off the season well, only for his performance to regress substantially following a 3-0 start, finishing with nine touchdowns and 13 interceptions. He started six games for Carolina in 2022, throwing seven touchdowns and three picks before departing in free agency.

Though Darnold only started one game the ensuing season as a backup for the 49ers, he performed well in limited action with 297 passing yards and two touchdowns while learning under pass game coordinator Klint Kubiak. Building off of that experience, an injury to first-round pick J.J. McCarthy opened the door for him to start for the Vikings last season and he couldn’t have capitalized more on the opportunity, thriving in coach Kevin O’Connell’s offense with 35 passing touchdowns while guiding the team to a 14-3 record.

Playing with great confidence under O’Connell’s tutelage, Darnold finished fifth in passing yards (4,319), fifth in touchdown passes (35), and sixth in yards per attempt (7.9), producing career-bests in all three categories despite getting sacked 48 times. Contrary to the popular narrative, though he did struggle in Minnesota’s final two games while under constant siege, he finished second in the NFL with 13 touchdown passes when under pressure with 13 Big Time Throws.

Maximizing on Darnold’s underrated athleticism and arm talent, the Vikings dialed up frequent play action on nearly 29 percent of their pass attempts and the quarterback took advantage by throwing an NFL-high 16 touchdown passes and averaging 10.1 yards per attempt on play pass concepts while only throwing three interceptions. While he didn’t run often and isn’t necessarily a dual threat weapon, his ability to extend plays on the run created several opportunities for big plays last season, including a game-winning touchdown toss to Justin Jefferson after slipping away from a sack against his new team at Lumen Field in Week 16.

Due to the fact he struggled in his first five NFL seasons, general manager John Schneider and the Seahawks obviously are taking a calculated risk by signing Darnold to a three-year contract worth more than $30 million per year off of one quality season of work. But at just 27 years of age, if they can reload the offense around him after trading receiver DK Metcalf to the Steelers on Sunday and fortify a subpar offensive line to protect him through free agency and the upcoming draft, he has a chance to continue his career resurgence reuniting with Kubiak in a familiar scheme that offers a ton of parallels to the one he excelled in with the Vikings.

Holding five selections in the first 92 picks in the NFL draft next month and 10 selections overall, Darnold’s addition won’t curtail Seattle from being active pursuing a potential franchise quarterback either. As things stand, he will come to town as the new starter with Sam Howell and Jaren Hall as backups, but it wouldn’t be a surprise if Schneider takes a shot drafting and developing a quarterback as well.