ESPN NFL analyst has surprising take about Seahawks’ Sam Darnold

Seattle Seahawks quarterback Sam Darnold didn’t have many believers entering the 2025 NFL Season. Many experts didn’t believe Seattle would be in contention for a divisional title or the playoffs because of Darnold’s addition to the team.

Over the course of the season, Darnold proved many of the doubters wrong by being one of the most efficient and proven leaders in the league. He proved his potential by leading the Seahawks to a 14-3 season, the NFC West Divisional title, and the No. 1 seed in the NFC. Darnold proved he can play and win games with late-season wins over the Los Angeles Rams in Week 16 and the San Francisco 49ers on the road in Week 18.

Darnold’s list of critics is shrinking while his support as the Seahawks’ franchise quarterback grows. Now, Darnold must lead the Seahawks into the playoffs as one of the Super Bowl favorites.

"I believe in Sam Darnold, I think he's a top-10 quarterback in this league, and I think the Jets should be embarrassed that they let him walk out of their building." 👀@danorlovsky7 believes in Sam Darnold heading into the NFL postseason 🏈 pic.twitter.com/BedAOICCVr
January 5, 2026
He doesn’t have the best postseason resume under his belt last season with the Minnesota Vikings. ESPN analyst and former NFL quarterback Dan Orlovsky, however, believes Darnold has turned a new page in his career during a segment on Monday’s First Take.
“I’m team Sam Darnold, I believe in Sam Darnold. I think he’s a top-10 quarterback in this league and I think the (New York) Jets should be embarrassed that they let him walk out of their building.”
“There’s been moments this season where Sam has given me some caution. I’ve always believed in his talent, but I’m like ‘Sam, you got to stop getting away with bad stuff.’ That was probably four or five weeks ago and it didn’t him in totality and the last couple of weeks it feels like he rectified that. I know he plays his best football when he’s needed the most.”
“I’m talking about a guy that has made good decisions on a consistent basis this year over the body of his work and we’ve seen him be clutch in the last few weeks when he’s needed to be clutch. The drive against the (Los Angeles) Rams, the finishing drive against the 49ers when he gets outside the pocket.”
“I think that Sam Darnold has warranted us to sit back and say ‘let’s look at your through the prism of what you become the last two years rather than the guy we continue to see under the umbrella of the first four of five years of his career.”
Jan 3, 2021; Foxborough, Massachusetts, USA; New York Jets quarterback Sam Darnold (14) looks to pass against the New England Patriots during the second quarter at Gillette Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Brian Fluharty-Imagn Images | Brian Fluharty-Imagn Images
Darnold has been through a lot in his career, especially the first five years, where he spent the first three with the Jets and the latter two with the Carolina Panthers. In the first five years, Darnold completed 59.7% of his passes for 11,767 yards, 61 touchdowns, 55 interceptions, a passer rating of 78.2, and a QBR of 45.9.
While he had some good moments and completed good comebacks, the Jets and the Panthers were devoid of other significant talent, as Darnold was 21-34 in those games.
In the 17 games with the Seahawks and the Minnesota Vikings last season, Darnold had a huge rebuilding. Darnold has completed 66.9% of his passes for 8,367 yards, 60 touchdowns, 26 interceptions, a QBR of 57.3, and a quarterback rating of 100.9. Darnold is 28-6 this season and last season.
There are many big differences between the Jets and the Panthers, back then the Vikings last season, and the Seahawks this season. This season and last year, Darnold has had a great set of talent around him, along with a coaching staff that builds and develops him.
He was doomed the moment he arrived in the final year under Todd Bowles in 2018 and in the first two years under Adam Gase. Darnold has his most stable support staff around him, and he is showing why he was deserving of being the third overall pick in the 2018 NFL Draft.
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