Sam Darnold’s History Against All Teams on Seahawks’ 2026 Schedule

A total of five different franchises in eight NFL seasons—including four in the last four years. However, that eighth NFL campaign resulted in Sam Darnold reaching the promised land as the starting quarterback of the Seattle Seahawks this past season.

Back in 2018, quarterback Baker Mayfield (Cleveland Browns) and running back Saquon Barkley (New York Giants) were the only players drafted ahead of the former USC signal-caller. Darnold was selected by the New York Jets, but after three disappointing season was traded to Carolina. In 2023, he joined the San Francisco 49ers as a backup.

In 2024, it was off to Minnesota, where he enjoyed a Pro Bowl campaign and led a team to the playoffs for the first time. A little over a year ago, Seahawks’ general manager John Schneider inked Darnold to a three-year deal. After an up-and-down regular season in which he totaled 25 TD passes and committed 20 turnovers, he held onto the ball during Seattle’s three-game Super Bowl LX run.

The Seahawks kick off defense of the franchise’s second Lombardi Trophy at home on Wednesday night, September 9, against the team they throttled on Super Sunday in February. Here’s a look at how Darnold has fared against the 14 different franchises on this season's schedule during his career.

New England Patriots (Week 1)

Talk about an interesting history? Darnold faced the Patriots once a year from 2018-21, the first three seasons as a member of the Jets and in 2021 while in Carolina. He has a combined 0-4 record as a starter in those contests, throwing for 791 yards, one touchdown and nine interceptions, He was also sacked nine times and lost two of his three fumbles.

Then came Super Bowl LX. After a rough start, Darnold completed exactly half of his throws (19-of-38) for 202 yards and a TD pass and was sacked only once in the club’s 29-13 victory.

Arizona Cardinals (Weeks 2 and 9)

As a member of the San Francisco 49ers in 2023, Darnold made appearances in each of the team’s game with the Cardinals. However, he’s made a combined three starts vs. Arizona the past two seasons with the Vikings (1-0) and Seahawks (2-0), respectively. In those contests, he threw for a combined 655 yards, four touchdowns, one pick, and a pair of lost fumbles. Darnold was sacked a combined nine times in those three outings.

Washington Commanders (Week 3)

Similar to his history with the Cardinals, Darnold did mop-up duty vs. Arizona as a member of the 49ers in 2023. He faces Washington in his second season with the Jets, throwing for 293 yards and four TDs (1 interception) in a 34-17 road win. This past season on a Sunday night at Landover (Week 9), Darnold hit on 21-of-24 throws for 330 yards and four touchdowns with one pick in a 38-14 victory.

Los Angeles Chargers (Week 4)

The New York Jets faced the Chargers at SoFi Stadium in Week 11 of 2020. However, Darnold was inactive that day against the Bolts (Joe Flacco got the start), meaning the eight-year pro will be facing the Chargers for the first time.

San Francisco 49ers (Weeks 5 and 12)

Sam Darnold 2023 with 49ers — USA TODAY Sports via Reuters Connect

The Seahawks saw plenty of Kyle Shanahan’s club in 2025. Of course, Darnold played for the 49ers in 2023. He made 10 appearances that season, started the Week 18 finale against the Rams (a 21-20 loss) and did not appear in the postseason.

As for his career vs. the Niners, he owns a 3-2 record as a starter (including playoffs) with the Jets (0-1), Vikings (1-0), and Seahawks (2-1). He’s thrown for a combined 919 yards and four TDs, with one interception. Darnold has also been sacked nine times and lost one of his four fumbles.

Denver Broncos (Week 6)

Darnold faced the Broncos twice in his first three seasons (2018 and 2010) while he was still with the Jets, and then again in 2022 as a member of the Panthers. In those outings, he combined to complete 44 of his 83 throws for 592 yards, four touchdowns and one pick. He also ran for a total of 92 yards and two scores in those contests

Kansas City Chiefs (Week 7)

In his final season with the Jets in 2020, Darnold and his team were on the wrong end of a 35-9 score at Arrowhead Stadium. He threw for 133 yards, hitting on 18-of-30 throws, was sacked once and ran four times for 21 yards in the in the 26-point setback.

Chicago Bears (Week 8)

Darnold has made three starts vs. the Bears—once during his rookie season in 2018 (a 24-10 loss at Soldier Field) while with the Jets and twice in 2024 with Minnesota. In those three contests, he combined to connect on 60-of-103 throws for 714 yards, 4 touchdowns and one pick.

Las Vegas Raiders (Week 10)

Jets Sam Darnold vs. Raiders — USA TODAY Network via Reuters Connect

The former USC standout has battled the Silver and Black twice, both while he suited up for the Jets in 2019 and ’20—both of those games at MetLife Stadium. New York split those contests, while Darnold combined for 501 yards through the air. He threw for four scores, was picked off once, sacked four times and lost two of his three fumbles. He also ran for a combined 42 yards and two touchdowns.

Dallas Cowboys (Week 13)

The eight-year pro has faced the Cowboys a total of three times, but that includes 11 snaps as a reserve (he completed 1 pass for 1 yard) while he was with the 49ers in 2023. In his two starts, he faced Dallas in 2019 while with the Jets and again as a member of the Panthers in 2019. In both of those starts, Darnold threw 300-plus yards. Hence, his three-game total reads 640 yards, four TD passes, three interceptions. He was sacked seven times but combined for 35 yards rushing and a pair of TDs.

New York Giants (Week 14)

Th3 6’3”, 225-pounder field general has faced “Big Blue” four times but has started only three of those games (2-1 record), the first as a member of the Jets in 2019. There was the 2021 clash while he was with the Panthers in 2021, as well as Week 1 of 2024 as Vikings’ head coach Kevin O’Connell’s field general (he also played 4 snaps in 2023 while with the 49ers). It adds up to a total of 550 passing yards, three TD tosses, one rushing touchdown, and a pair of interceptions while absorbing a half-dozen sacks.

Philadelphia Eagles (Week 15)

Darnold has faced the Eagles only twice, once as a member of the Panthers in 2021, and the other time with San Francisco in 2023 (he took a knee on the final play of the 49ers’ 42-19 win). In a 21-18 home loss to the Birds, he threw for 177 yards and one score, served up three interceptions and was sacked three times.

Los Angeles Rams (Weeks 16 and 18)

Sam Darnold 25/36, 346 YDS, 3 TDs, 0 INT vs LAR NFC Championship Today.pic.twitter.com/SroyItyErH https://t.co/dRhpxOVE8g
— Football Performances (@NFLPerformances) January 26, 2026

The 29-year-old hurler has played in a total of four postseason games during his eight-year career, two against the Rams. There was the 2024 wild card clash vs. the Rams in which he was sacked nine times and committed a pair of turnovers in Minnesota's 27-9 loss. Of course, there was also the 2025 NFC title game at Seattle in which he connected on 25-of-36 passes for 346 yards and three touchdowns in the club’s 31-27 victory.

Including those two postseason clashes, Darnold has faced Sean McVay’s club seven times since 2020 and as a member of four different teams (he didn’t face the Rams while with the Panthers. He owns a 3-4 mark as a starter, thrown for a total of 1,776 yards and 10 touchdowns while being picked off seven times. Darnold has also been sacked on 24 occasions and lost 2-of-5 fumbles.

Carolina Panthers (Week 17)

The well-traveled quarterback did not face the Panthers, the team he played for from 2021-22, until this past season (Week 17 at Charlotte). The eventual Super Bowl champion Seahawks came away with a 27-10 victory, but their quarterback was far from sharp. Darnold finished the afternoon 18-of-27 for 147 yards and one touchdown, but he was sacked three times, picked off once and lost one of his two fumbles.

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