Field Gulls
Darnold’s comeback season for the Vikings lands him number 72 on this year’s list.
As training camp inches closer and closer, the NFL Top 100 Players of 2025 continues on. Last year, the Seattle Seahawks had three players in the top 100. Safety Julian Love came in at 95, cornerback Riq Woolen came in at 91, and former Seahawks wide receiver DK Metcalf came in at 84. Of course, some notable names were left off the list (Geno Smith, Devon Witherspoon), but unfortunately, being underrated is par for the course with Seattle sports. That trend continued this year as well with Leonard Williams coming in at 99.
However, one name that may have come as a surprise to Seahawks fans just surfaced on this year’s list. New starting quarterback Sam Darnold came in at number 72, the first ranking of his career.) Darnold had a breakout season last year with the Minnesota Vikings, which came after rookie JJ McCarthy tore his right meniscus and was ruled out for the entire season. Darnold quickly took advantage, posting a 66.2 completion percentage while throwing for 4,219 yards and 35 touchdowns to only 12 interceptions. The 2025 season for Darnold was a huge turnaround for his career after “seeing ghosts” with the New York Jets and then quickly becoming a backup with the Carolina Panthers and San Francisco 49ers.
The elephant in the room for Darnold, and for the Seattle Seahawks as a whole, is, can Darnold repeat this career comeback this 2025 season? One of the arguments that he can repeat this success, is that his time starting with the Jets (and briefly with the Panthers) are not good testaments to his true skills. The Jets are infamously “quarterback hell” and will ruin any passer they touch. Just look at how Geno Smith left the Jets and was able to resurrect his career in Seattle.
The Panthers have not been much better. Baker Mayfield also flamed out in Carolina in 2022 (just like Darnold), but then joined the Rams and immediately led them to a 98-yard game winning drive, off the bench. Mayfield has since found success with the Tampa Bay Buccaneers. All this is to say that Darnold’s time with the Jets and Panthers may not be a fair depiction of his true talent/potential. When put in a situation where he can flourish, such as in Minnesota last year, Darnold could be a true franchise quarterback. Seahawks fans surely hope this will be the case this year in Seattle, where Darnold is reunited with Klint Kubiak, who was Darnold’s passing game coordinator in San Francisco in 2023.
However, there are valid arguments that Darnold will shrink back into what most people think he is, a career backup. Surely, the lack of success with the Jets and Panthers still leave a “stink” over Darnold. Add onto that, his success last year came with quarterback guru, Kevin O’Connell as his head coach, and with one of the best supporting casts one can have...
