Quarterback Sam Darnold joined The Rich Eisen Show on Thursday to talk about his journey to the Seattle Seahawks.
Why Schlereth differs from national perception of Seahawks
Here are three things you need to know.
• 1. Darnold didn’t know he’d join the Seahawks until two days before signing.
It’s a wild ride for NFL free agents. Top targets have their choice of several suitors, and sometimes last-minute news can help sway them toward one team over another.
That’s what happened for Darnold, who got wind of a potential Geno Smith trade and found himself eyeing Seattle. That trade is what ultimately put the Hawks in motion for Darnold (go figure), and it led to a deal coming together with Seattle relatively quickly.
“You’re kind of narrowing things down,” Darnold said. “I’m talking to my agent and all the sudden we find out Geno is potentially getting traded. When we found that out, that was kind of like, OK, Seattle’s in the mix for sure. Things just kind of happened behind the scenes and before you know it there’s certain things moving.
“It all happened so fast. You don’t really know like two days before you sign, and all the sudden I knew — especially after the Geno trade happened — I felt like this could be a good place.”
Other factors at play? Darnold’s familiarity with new Seahawks offensive coordinator Klint Kubiak, and what he felt was an impressive defense under head coach Mike Macdonald that was hard to play against last season.
• 2. Cooper Kupp’s unique route running fascinates Darnold, but also means getting more reps is important.
An underrated part of Darnold’s transition to Seattle is time spent learning every receiver’s body language.
All eyes have been on the development of the offensive line and on Kubiak’s scheme, but Darnold has more than pressure to worry about — he’s got an entirely new group of pass catchers, two of whom (Kupp and Marquez Valdes-Scantling) are new to Seattle themselves.
Darnold can see why Kupp is a former All-Pro.
“Coop’s amazing. The way he moves is very unique,” Darnold said. “Being able to get a ton of reps with him and just see how he gets in and out of routes, like I said, is different. But that’s what makes him such a great player is just the way he can make certain routes look the same and he ends up in a completely different spot. It’s very unique. So being able to get those reps with him has been amazing.”
• 3. There’s not one thing that “clicked” with the Vikings; Sam’s journey began years ago.
It sure looked like Darnold would have to settle for life as a career backup after flaming out with the New York Jets. That was before a career year with Minnesota in 2024: 4,319 yards and 35 touchdowns over 17 starts.
What was the key to his breakout? For Darnold, it didn’t start a year ago. Instead it came with his failures.
“I can’t point to one thing,” Darnold said. “I think it’s an accumulation of everything I’ve learned in the NFL. Even going back to being in New York and Carolina, at times when I struggled, I learned. Even going back to my time in San Fran, too, what I learned with Kyle (Shannahan). Klint Kubiak was on that staff as well, but his brother Klay, (quarterbacks coach) Brian Griese, (quarterback) Brock (Purdy) — just all the people who were in that building helped me out a ton.
“(I brought) that all the way to Minnesota, and doing my best to understand the playbook, better understand defenses, and the intention of every single play.”
Seattle Seahawks coverage
• Seahawks sign undrafted rookie defensive tackle
• Schlereth: Seahawks WR Cooper Kupp “like having an extra tight end”
• Bump: A Seahawks position battle to watch
• Brock: A pivotal trait for Seahawks’ open O-line positions
• Salk: Seattle Seahawks’ D isn’t elite, but a trade could change that