Seattle Seahawks cornerback Devon Witherspoon (21) forces a fumble against New England Patriots quarterback Drake Maye (10) at the NFL Super Bowl 60 game in Santa Clara, Calif., Sunday, February 8, 2026. (Adam Hunger/AP Content Services for the NFL)

SANTA CLARA, Calif. (AP) — Defense won this championship.

Devon Witherspoon, Derick Hall, Byron Murphy and the rest of Mike Macdonald’s ferocious unit pummeled Drake Maye, and the Seattle Seahawks beat the New England Patriots 29-13 on Sunday to win the franchise’s second Super Bowl.

Former Vikings quarterback Sam Darnold threw a touchdown pass to AJ Barner, Kenneth Walker III ran for 135 yards and Jason Myers set a Super Bowl record by making all five of his field-goal tries.

Walker became the first running back to win the Super Bowl MVP award since Terrell Davis 28 years ago.

Uchenna Nwosu punctuated a punishing defensive performance by snagging Maye’s pass in the air after Witherspoon hit his arm and ran it back 45 yards for a pick-6.

“It’s a one-of-a-kind feeling, bro,” Witherspoon said. “You talk about a group of guys who battle every day, who believe in each other and believe in their coach, you can’t describe this group no better. It’s just a one-of-a-kind feeling. I was just so happy to battle with these guys. We went through a lot, but we believed. All of you all doubters

Seattle Seahawks quarterback Sam Darnold looks to pass in the first possession of Super Bowl LX against the New England Patriots at Levi’s Stadium on Sunday, Feb. 8, 2026, in Santa Clara, California. (Nick Wagner/The Seattle Times/TNS)

out there who said all that other stuff, you all don’t know what’s going on in this building. We’re one of one over here.”

Seattle’s “Dark Side” defense helped Darnold become the first quarterback in the 2018 draft class to win a Super Bowl, ahead of Josh Allen, Baker Mayfield and Lamar Jackson.

“To do this with this team, I wouldn’t want it any other way,” Darnold said. “So proud of our guys, our defense. I mean, I can’t say enough great things about our defense, our special teams.”

Labeled a bust, dumped by two teams and considered expendable by two others, Darnold proved his doubters wrong while helping the Seahawks go 17-3.

After leading the NFL with 20 turnovers in the regular season, Darnold didn’t have any in three playoff games. He wasn’t particularly sharp against a solid Patriots defense but protected the ball and made enough plays, finishing 19 of 38 for 202 yards.

Seattle Seahawks running back Kenneth Walker III gains yards against New England Patriots defensive tackle Christian Barmore in the second half of Super Bowl LX Sunday, Feb. 8, 2026, at Levi’s Stadium in Santa Clara, California. (Jennifer Buchanan/The Seattle Times/TNS)

“I know we won the Super Bowl, but we could have been a little bit better on offense, but I don’t care about that right now,” Darnold said. “It’s an unbelievable feeling, man.

I’m just so happy for the guys in the locker room and the coaches that put in so much effort throughout the whole season.”

The Seahawks sacked Maye six times, including two apiece by Hall and Murphy. Hall’s strip-sack late in the third quarter set up a short field and Darnold connected with Barner on 16-yard scoring toss to make it 19-0.

Julian Love’s interception set up another field goal that made it 22-7 with 5:35 left.

The Patriots (17-4) punted on the first eight drives, excluding a kneel-down to end the first half.

“We had a really good year, one that I’m proud of,” New England coach Mike Vrabel said. “But this game wasn’t a reflection of that. We were outcoached and outplayed.”

Down 19-0, Maye and the Patriots’ offense finally got going. He hit Mack Hollins over the middle in traffic for 24 yards and then lofted a perfect 35-yard TD pass to Hollins down the left side to cut the deficit to 19-7.

Seattle Seahawks chair Jody Allen hands the the Lombardi Trophy to head coach Mike MacDonald after a win over the New England Patriots in the NFL Super Bowl 60 football game, Sunday, Feb. 8, 2026, in Santa Clara, Calif. (AP Photo/Matt Slocum)

Tom Brady once led Bill Belichick’s Patriots to the greatest comeback in Super Bowl history, when New England rallied from a 28-3 deficit against Atlanta for a 34-28 overtime victory.

But Maye, who was runner-up to Matthew Stafford for the AP NFL MVP award in the closest race in two decades, didn’t come close. He had a chance to get it closer, but his ill-advised pass into triple coverage was picked by Love and the Patriots trailed by 15 when they got the ball back with 5:35 left.

Then came Nwosu’s touchdown, a fitting way to cap an overwhelming effort by the NFL’s stingiest defense.

“Definitely hurts. They played better than us tonight,” Maye said.

Maye’s 7-yard TD pass to Rhamondre Stevenson late in the game only made the margin smaller.

The Seahawks took a 3-0 lead on Myers’ 33-yard field goal on the game’s opening drive. Myers connected from 39 and 41 yards to extend the lead to 9-0 at halftime. He was good from 41 on Seattle’s first drive of the third quarter to make it 12-0.

New England Patriots cornerback Christian Gonzalez walks off the field after losing to the Seattle Seahawks in the NFL Super Bowl 60 football game, Sunday, Feb. 8, 2026, in Santa Clara, Calif. (AP Photo/Sue Ogrocki)

Patriots player of the game

Cornerback Christian Gonzalez made two outstanding plays to prevent potential touchdowns in the second quarter. He raced back and leaped in the air to slap away a deep pass to Rasheed Shahid that could have been a 76-yard TD.

On Seattle’s last drive in the first half, Gonzalez knocked down a pass to All-Pro wide receiver Jaxon Smith-Njigba that would have been a 23-yard TD.

Mills gets a two-for-one sack

Rylie Mills pushed left guard Jared Wilson into Maye and took both of them down on one of Seattle’s sacks.

Bad Bunny shines at halftime

Bad Bunny headlined a visually stunning halftime performance that also featured appearances by Lady Gaga and Ricky Martin. The Grammy-winning Puerto Rican artist entirely in Spanish.

Seattle Seahawks quarterback Sam Darnold celebrates after the NFL Super Bowl 60 football game against the New England Patriots, Sunday, Feb. 8, 2026, in Santa Clara, Calif. (AP Photo/Doug Benc)

Patriots denied a record 7th title

The Patriots failed to win the franchise’s seventh Super Bowl, which would have set an

NFL record. They’re tied with the Steelers with six championships.

AP NFL Coach of the Year Mike Vrabel was aiming to become the fifth person to win a Super Bowl as a player and head coach and the first to do both with the same team.

The 23-year-old Maye was trying to become the youngest QB to win a Lombardi Trophy. Ben Roethlisberger still holds that mark.

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By JANIE McCAULEY

SANTA CLARA, Calif. (AP) — How fitting that Sam Darnold delivered the capstone of his topsy-turvy NFL career in the very same place where he recently revived it.

On the sideline of Levi’s Stadium two seasons ago, Darnold patiently paid his dues behind Brock Purdy as San Francisco’s backup quarterback and soaked up every ounce of knowledge he could from the coaches.

Back in the Bay Area on Sunday and beneath the bright lights, Darnold became a Super Bowl champion in his first year under center for the Seattle Seahawks — his fifth team in eight seasons.

Seattle captured the franchise’s second Lombardi Trophy with a dominant 29-13 victory over the New England Patriots. Darnold even dressed in the same locker room Sunday where he once roamed with the 49ers, then took the field and completed 19 of 38 passes for 202 yards and a touchdown.

The 28-year-old Darnold now has an NFL title to his name, and that should be plenty to prove he belongs among the NFL’s elite quarterbacks after a much-criticized beginning to his professional career.

He hung tough for the Seahawks this season through the ups and downs, time and again. Just as he had done so many times before while facing the doubters who largely considered him a bust.

That forgettable, four-interception game in a 21-19 Week 11 road loss to the Rams in mid-November seems so long ago now. Darnold’s teammates stuck by him, and he used that day as fuel to be better: beating the Rams the next two meetings, rallying his team to a 38-37 overtime victory Dec. 18 before a 31-27 triumph in the NFC championship game last month.

Darnold credited that time with San Francisco playing in coach Kyle Shanahan’s offense while learning from Purdy as crucial to reviving his career, then he produced a breakout year with Minnesota last season before heading off to the Pacific Northwest.

Darnold started one game in 2023 for the 49ers and appeared in 10, throwing 46 total passes with 28 completions and a pair of touchdowns. He cherished the guidance he received from quarterbacks coach Brian Griese, an 11-year NFL veteran himself.

It has been quite a journey for Darnold to find his footing in the pros after being drafted third overall by the New York Jets in the first round of the 2018 draft out of USC.

He had a 13-25 record and a 78.6 passer rating over his initial three seasons for the Jets — the second worst in the league among 43 quarterbacks with at least 15 starts from 2018-20.

Across the country in Seattle, Darnold has thrived — still with some of those same San Francisco ties. Offensive coordinator Klint Kubiak was the Niners’ passing game coordinator in 2023.

___

AP NFL: https://apnews.com/hub/NFL

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SANTA CLARA, Calif. (AP) — Seattle Seahawks win the second Super Bowl title in franchise history, beating the New England Patriots 29-13.

 

Bad Bunny, a Puerto Rican music star, led a celebratory performance of Latino heritage at the Super Bowl halftime show, the first time in the 60-year history of the NFL’s championship game that the flagship entertainment has been done largely in Spanish.

His 13-minute performance, which included hits including “Nuevayol” and “Baile Inolvidable,” included guest spots by Lady Gaga — who sang a salsa-style “Die With a Smile,” her hit with Bruno Mars, in English — and Ricky Martin. It also featured a set of a New York-style street scene, complete with a bodega bearing a “We accept EBT” lighted sign, referring to electronic benefits cards.

It has been a whirlwind year for Bad Bunny, with an acclaimed album, “Debí Tirar Más Fotos,” that explores Puerto Rican identity and mixes sounds old and new. Last week, it took album of the year at the Grammy Awards, another milestone for Latin music.

His appearance at the Super Bowl had become a political flash point amid the Trump administration’s immigration crackdown, and the NFL’s announcement of him as its halftime star last fall drew waves of condemnation on the right, including from President Donald Trump.

After Bad Bunny said “ICE out” at the Grammy Awards last week, referring to Immigration and Customs Enforcement, there had been speculation that he could make another political statement. There was nothing that explicit or provocative, but after saying “God bless America,” Bad Bunny read a list of countries throughout North and South America — Brazil, Colombia, Venezuela, United States — suggesting that Bad Bunny was offering a meaning of “America” that is wider than the U.S.

Here’s what to know:

— Global superstar: Born Benito Antonio Martínez Ocasio, Bad Bunny has become one of the music world’s biggest stars with booming reggaeton hits that also draw on the nostalgic sounds of salsa and traditional Puerto Rican rhythms. He has been Spotify’s top-streaming artist for four of the past six years.

— A political force: Since early in his career, Bad Bunny has used his platform to draw attention to problems in Puerto Rico including overdevelopment, misconduct by politicians and the government’s poor response to Hurricane Maria. He has also criticized the Trump administration’s immigration policies, saying at the Grammys last week, “ICE out,” referring to Immigration and Customs Enforcement.

—

Trump responds: Trump mocked the halftime show in a social media post, calling it “absolutely terrible, one of the worst, EVER!” He added, “Nobody understands a word this guy is saying.”

— Counterprogramming: Turning Point USA, the conservative organization founded by Charlie Kirk, put on its own streaming event Sunday, the All-American Halftime Show — with “no ‘woke’ garbage” — as counterprogramming. It featured Kid Rock and country singers Brantley Gilbert and Lee Brice.

— ICE presence: Kristi Noem, the homeland security secretary, said last fall that Immigration and Customs Enforcement agents would “be all over” the Super Bowl. Last week, the NFL’s security chief said that although agents from a number of federal agencies would be present, there would be no “immigration enforcement operations” at the game Sunday.

This article originally appeared in The New York Times.

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