Sam Darnold was a man of the people at Wednesday’s championship celebration in Seattle. He held a beer in one hand and the Lombardi Trophy in the other as he briefly addressed not only the crowd but his haters.
“I’ve talked a lot this last week about belief,” Darnold said, via Brady Henderson of ESPN. “A lot of people didn’t believe in me, but it didn’t matter because the ones that are close believed in me, including you all. I appreciate you all so much. That short list also includes [team owner] Jody Allen, [General Manager] John Schneider, [coach] Mike Macdonald. I appreciate the belief you all had in me for signing me this past year.
“And last but certainly not least, these players, man, for believing in me. I wouldn’t be here without these guys.”
Linebacker Ernest Jones IV wore a T-shirt depicting Darnold’s likeness with a cigarette in his mouth, a beer in one hand and a raised middle finger in the other.
“Not only do we have the best defense in the world, we got the best team in the world, and quite frankly, if you got anything to say for my quarterback, you got anything to say for my defense, you got anything to say for my O-line, and you got anything to say about the city of Seattle, I got two words for you: Fuck you!” Jones said Wednesday.
The Seahawks traded Geno Smith and signed Darnold to a three-year, $100.5 million contract in the 2025 offseason. He threw five touchdown passes with no interceptions in three postseason games after having 20 giveaways in the regular season.