It was only 16 months ago that Sam Darnold was in the very early stages of a comeback story made for a Hollywood script. He had just helped lead the Vikings a 28-6 win over the New York Giants at MetLife Stadium in what has proven to be a launching pad for his turnaround.
The location wasn’t insignificant.
It was the same place where he used to play home games after being drafted by the New York Jets, the same place where he was first labeled a bust, and the same place where he almost watched his career go up in flames.
After completing 19 of 24 passes for 208 yards and a pair of touchdowns for the Vikings in the win over the Giants, Darnold was given a chance to respond to everybody that might have doubted him with the Jets.
“Obviously it’s great to be back,” Darnold said with a smile. “It’s been a while since I’ve played here.”
It’s been a similar refrain from Darnold whenever he has been asked about his past. He hasn’t concerned himself with the narratives that have been attached to him every step of the way. He has openly acknowledged the role he’s played in his shortcomings and kept it pushing.
That’s why it should be easy to be happy for Darnold as he prepares for the Super Bowl after finding a forever home with the Seattle Seahawks. The winding road it took for him to get to where he is now would’ve been enough to break most people.
After being thrown away like a piece of garbage by the Jets, Darnold ended up in the middle of disaster with the Carolina Panthers. He found some stability with the San Francisco 49ers and parlayed that into an opportunity that changed his life.
As his success with the Vikings started to become undeniable last season, he refused to throw shade whenever the Jets or the Panthers came up in conversation. He never took the bait. He always took the high road.
In the process, Darnold led the Vikings to a 14-3 record, showing flashes of the generational talent he was supposed to be when the Jets selected with the No. 3 pick in the 2018 NFL Draft. It still wasn’t enough for the Vikings to keep him around long term.
After he came up small in in a loss to the Detroit Lions with the No. 1 seed on the line, then looked overwhelmed in a loss to the Los Angeles Rams in the first round of the playoffs, the Vikings ultimately let Darnold walk out the door in free agency, perhaps feeling that they had reached their ceiling with him at the helm.
The magnitude of that miscalculation doesn’t need to be litigated anymore than it already has been. This isn’t about the Vikings. This is about the franchise quarterback they willingly let slip through their fingertips.
As his success with the Seahawks started to become undeniable this season, he refused to throw shade whenever the Vikings have come up in conversation. He has never taken the bait. He has always taken the high road.
In the process, Darnold led the Seahawks to a 14-3 record, proving his resurgence with the Vikings was far from a fluke. It was actually the tip of the iceberg for everything he could accomplish as the unquestioned leader of a locker room.
That hasn’t stopped the doubters from assuming that Darnold would eventually turn back into a pumpkin. They have constantly claimed he has been carried by a talented roster around him while anxiously awaiting for the other shoe to drop.
That argument went out the window in the NFC Championship Game as Darnold was the straw that stirred the drink for the Seahawks in a 31-27 win over the Rams. He completed 25 of 36 passes for 346 yards and a trio of touchdowns amid a a masterful performance that helped the Seahawks clinch a spot in the Super Bowl.
As he celebrated in the immediate aftermath, Darnold was asked to describe the journey he’s been on to get to this point.
“I haven’t really thought about that much,” Darnold said with a smile. “I take it one day at a time.”
There it is. That mentality that kept him going when nobody believed in him. Now he’s getting ready for the biggest game of his life.
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