The Seahawks signed Sam Darnold to a multi-year contract on Wednesday, bringing the former Vikings Pro-Bowl quarterback to Seattle to lead a new-look offense.
Darnold, 27, is coming off the best season of his career, having earned Pro-Bowl honors after throwing for 4,319 yards, 35 touchdowns and 12 interceptions while helping lead the Vikings to a 14-3 record.
And coming off of that breakout season that made him one of the top free agents in this year's class, Darnold is coming to Seattle where he will be reunited with new Seahawks offensive coordinator, Klint Kubiak. The two also worked together in San Francisco in 2023 when Kubiak was the 49ers' passing game coordinator and Darnold was the backup to Brock Purdy on a team that reached the Super Bowl.
"It's the people, first and foremost," Darnold said after signing his contract Thursday. "I'm just very excited to get in the building, meet everyone. You kind of hear rumors when you're playing on other teams about the good organizations and the places to be, and this was definitely one of them for me. So when the Geno (Smith) trade went down, I knew that this could potentially be a really good spot for me. I'm so excited to be able to work with Klint and all the weapons we have on offense, the offensive line. Just ready to get this thing rolling."
Darnold, the No. 3 overall pick in the 2018 draft out of USC, started 38 games over his first three seasons before being traded to the Panthers in 2021. He then started 15 games over two seasons with Carolina before signing with the 49ers in 2023. Much like the quarterback he is replacing in Seattle, Geno Smith, Darnold had an up-and-down start to his NFL career, which like Smith's, also began with the Jets. And much like Smith, Darnold was able to thrive when put in a good situation, enjoying a breakout 2024 campaign with the Vikings on the way to his first Pro-Bowl selection and a career-best 102.5 passer rating.
"It was definitely a confidence booster, I guess you could say, but I always knew I had it in me," Darnold said of his breakout season in Minnesota. "So just to be able to string all those games together and consistently play good football, that was the biggest thing I was looking forward to, and to be able to do that last year and put myself in a good position to continue to have that success was huge for me."