Stat show how elite Seahawks' Sam Darnold is when facing extra pressure

Too many times, talented quarterbacks playing under bad teams have become jokes to trolls, casual media outlets, and even experts. An example of this is Sam Darnold in his three years in the league with the New York Jets. The joke of 'seeing ghosts' continues to haunt Darnold to this day, even though he is playing elite with the Seattle Seahawks.

In the nine games with the Seahawks this season, Darnold has been electric and incredibly efficient. Darnold has completed 71.1% of his passes for 2,262 yards, 17 touchdowns, six interceptions, and a league-high 77.6 QBR. He has been solid through the first ten weeks of the season, much like he was last season for the Minnesota Vikings.

Darnold isn't forcing his passes out to his pass-catchers. He is patiently waiting for players like wide receiver Jaxon Smith-Njigba, wide receiver Cooper Kupp, tight end A.J. Barner, and a group of young, talented rookies to get to a comfortable position on their routes away from the opposing defensive backs.

Most of all, Darnold is making accurate passes when he needs to against the blitz. He is graded as the No. 1 quarterback in the league at 90.6 when facing an opposing team's blitz. He is also first in the league in big-throw rate at 10.7% with nine big-time throws. Finally, Darnold possesses the sixth-lowest turnover-worthy play rate with one bad throw.

Even when facing serious pressure from opposing defenses, Darnold has delivered the ball to his receivers for efficient plays. Darnold doesn’t panic when he sees an extra player coming at him. Instead, he has been taught to focus on the lack of extra coverage support on the field, leading players like JSN, who is the league’s top receiver, to get open and make a big play.

The quarterback that Darnold will face in Week 11 on the road, in Los Angeles Rams' Matthew Stafford, should be on the short list for league MVP. While he has been great leading the Rams to one of the top offenses in the league, he isn't as efficient against the blitz as Darnold.

Stafford has the sixth-highest overall grade (81.4) when dealing with an opposing team's blitz. He has also been prone to making mistakes when facing blitzing situations. Stafford has four throws that are turnover-worthy plays, 21st in the league.

Darnold is far from being the underdeveloped quarterback playing for the poorly run Jets from 2018 to 2020. After three years with the Jets and two years with the Carolina Panthers, Darnold spent a year with the San Francisco 49ers under Kyle Shanahan in 2023 and the Vikings under Kevin O’Connell last season.

This season, Darnold is taking his bad experiences with bad teams and his years studying under Shanahan and O’Connell to turn into a true top-tier quarterback in the league. He is no longer seeing ghosts of his bad experience, but it might take an NFC West Divisional title or a deep run in the playoffs for others to feel the same. Darnold, along with his elite Seahawks team, might have the potential for a Super Bowl run.

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