Sam Darnold's Super Bowl Win Puts Jets Under Microscope

The New York Jets certainly could use a new quarterback.

Feb 8, 2026; Santa Clara, CA, USA; Seattle Seahawks quarterback Sam Darnold (14) celebrates with the Vince Lombardi trophy on the podium after defeating the New England Patriots in Super Bowl LX at Levi's Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Mark J. Rebilas-Imagn Images | Mark J. Rebilas-Imagn Images

The New York Jets were not in the Super Bowl on Sunday evening, but unsurprisingly, they were talked about a lot.

That is, of course, because of the fact that a prominent former member of the franchise just won his first Super Bowl. Jets fans remember Sam Darnold well. He was selected by the Jets with the No. 3 overall pick in the 2018 National Football League Draft by New York and spent the first three seasons of his career with the franchise.

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Over that stretch, Darnold showed flashes of the player that he could be. But the consistency wasn't there for a wide range of reasons. Overall, Darnold played in 38 games with the franchise and went 13-25 as the team's starter while racking up 8,097 passing yards, 45 touchdowns and 39 interceptions. Since then, Darnold has bounced around but really found his footing over the last two seasons. In fact, he had more regular season wins in his first season with the Seattle Seahawks in 2025 (14) than in his entire run in New York.

Now, all of these years later, Darnold is a Super Bowl champion at just 28 years old.

From seeing ghosts to seeing silver and his reflection: Seahawks QB Sam Darnold is now a Super-Bowl winning quarterback. pic.twitter.com/qVcL8ZyuSL

— Adam Schefter (@AdamSchefter) February 9, 2026

Darnold, after five seasons away from New York, is a Super Bowl champion. He did so by beating the Jets' biggest rivals in the New England Patriots, but with the Jets searching for a long-term answer at quarterback, it certainly brings the attention back to his time in New York. Now, of course, he's had other stops along the way. He spent time with the Carolina Panthers, San Francisco 49ers and Minnesota Vikings before coming over to Seattle. The Jets aren't the only team to lose this guy.

But it's hard not to think about what could've been. The Jets have had high-profile quarterback search after high-profile quarterback search and haven't found the solution. New York needs to rebuild the room once again this offseason. The perfect option at this point ironically would be Darnold, but unfortunately that ship has sailed. Even last offseason, Darnold was available, but New York didn't act.

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