After a disappointing first six years in the league, the former No. 3 overall draft pick resurrected his career with a breakout Pro Bowl campaign last fall. He led the Minnesota Vikings to a 14-3 regular season and five game-winning drives, while finishing fifth in the league in both passing yardage and touchdown passes.<\/p>\n
However, the luster of Darnold\u2019s breakthrough was somewhat dulled by a rough finish, as he struggled in a blowout Week 18 loss to the Detroit Lions and an ugly wild-card playoff loss to the Los Angeles Rams.<\/p>\n
As Darnold enters a new chapter of his career in Seattle, what type of season do the Seahawks need from him in order to have success this fall?<\/p>\n
When posed that question Tuesday on Seattle Sports\u2019 Bump and Stacy, ESPN\u2019s Bill Barnwell<\/a> focused on consistency and stability.<\/p>\n \u201cThe tough part at times \u2013 whether he\u2019s been playing in a bad situation or even in a good situation \u2013 is you don\u2019t know what you\u2019re going to get,\u201d Barnwell said. \u201cSome weeks, Sam Darnold is awesome. I mean, he can spin it. He has a great arm. He feels very confidence-driven \u2013 which every player, every quarterback is driven by confidence to some extent. But it feels like he\u2019s maybe more susceptible to that.<\/p>\n \u201cWhen things are going well, Sam Darnold looks great. And when things are not going well and he doesn\u2019t trust his offensive line and maybe he\u2019s made a mistake or two, Sam looks very scattershot. And so I think you want to see consistency.\u201d<\/p>\n<\/p>\n Even in the middle of Darnold\u2019s standout 2024 season, he had a no-touchdown, three-interception dud against the lowly Jacksonville Jaguars in Week 10. But he bounced back, throwing 11 TD passes and no picks over his next four games.<\/p>\n \u201cWeek in and week out, you\u2019re going to have some moments where you take sacks (and) you don\u2019t look great,\u201d Barnwell said. \u201cThat happens to every quarterback. But can you fight past that? If you make a mistake, can you come back out in the next drive and look good?<\/p>\n \u201cThe issue is not the arm with Sam. It\u2019s the head. So I think keeping his head consistent from week to week, keeping him afloat and keeping him with some level of confidence is going to be an important task for the coaching staff, and also think for Sam himself.\u201d<\/p>\n The coaching impact<\/p>\n Barnwell then elaborated on the role that coaching plays in building and maintaining a quarterback\u2019s confidence. That certainly was a factor in Darnold\u2019s success last season, as he played under Vikings head coach Kevin O\u2019Connell, who\u2019s regarded as one of the brightest offensive minds in the NFL.<\/p>\n But as Barnwell explained, it\u2019s not just the X\u2019s and O\u2019s that separates O\u2019Connell and other top coaches.<\/p>\n \u201cI can watch Vikings tape and steal all the plays they have \u2013 that doesn\u2019t mean that I\u2019m gonna be a good offensive coordinator,\u201d Barnwell said. \u201cSo much of it is about game-planning. So much of it is about just sustaining your quarterback\u2019s confidence. So much of it is giving them answers to what they\u2019re gonna face on a weekly basis.<\/p>\n \u201cAnd I think Sam Darnold had a lot of those answers last year in terms of, OK, what kind of blitzes am I gonna see? What are my answers? Who\u2019s my star player? How do I work off my star player?\u201d<\/p>\n Huard: Even with familiarity, expect a learning curve for Sam Darnold<\/a><\/p>\n For the Vikings last year, that star player was Justin Jefferson \u2013 one of the best wide receivers in the league.<\/p>\n \u201cThere were so many moments last year for the Vikings where it wasn\u2019t about, oh man, Justin Jefferson ran a crazy route and he got open and made a big play \u2013 although he does do that,\u201d Barnwell said. \u201cBut it was about, OK, I know how the opposing team is going to defend Justin Jefferson. This is what opens up based off of that. This is what opens up based off of the manipulation I have of my wide receiver.\u201d<\/p>\n While Seahawks wide receiver Jaxon Smith-Njigba isn\u2019t quite at Jefferson\u2019s superstar level, Barnwell anticipates he\u2019ll be the focal point of Seattle\u2019s offense this fall.<\/p>\n \u201cHe\u2019s not Justin Jefferson, but it kind of has to be the same thing here, because we know when you\u2019re looking at the Seahawks, that\u2019s probably who the opposing defensive coordinators are looking to stop,\u201d Barnwell said.<\/p>\n \u201cAnd so, how are teams covering JSN? What does that open up for the rest of the offense? How does the run game impact here? How does the play-action game affect here? And then how do you sort of make all of that succinct and actually tangible for Sam on a weekly basis? There\u2019s so much that goes into it.<\/p>\n \u201cAnd I think Sam is capable,\u201d Barnwell added. \u201c\u2026 Sam can do it. We saw him do it last year. But again, can you give him those answers every week? And can you keep him confident and afloat week to week?\u201d<\/p>\n Listen to the full conversation with Bill Barnwell\u00a0at this link<\/a>\u00a0or in the audio player near the top of this story. Tune in to Bump and Stacy weekdays from 10 a.m. to 2 p.m. or find the podcast on the Seattle Sports app.<\/p>\n Seattle Seahawks news and analysis<\/p>\n \u2022\u00a0Barnwell \u2018hopeful\u2019 but \u2018skeptical\u2019 of Seahawks\u2019 offensive playmakers<\/a>
\u2022\u00a0Seattle Seahawks wrap up draft class by signing TE Elijah Arroyo<\/a>
\u2022\u00a0Seahawks\u2019 Emmanwori first No. 35 pick to sign fully guaranteed deal<\/a>
\u2022\u00a0Seahawks place Nwosu on PUP list ahead of training camp<\/a>
\u2022 What\u2019s next for Seattle Seahawks\u2019 sticky situation with 2nd-round picks<\/a><\/p>\n
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