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Sam Darnold finally delivered on his promise with a breakout season for the Minnesota Vikings in 2024, finishing the season with an 80.7 PFF overall grade that ranked 13th among 42 qualifying quarterbacks. However, Minnesota’s season spiraled over the final two weeks, and Darnold became the face of the collapse.
And rightly so.
The former USC quarterback bottomed out when it mattered most, earning a PFF overall grade of 49.2 in the regular-season finale against the Detroit Lions and following it with a 54.9 grade in Minnesota’s wild-card loss to the Los Angeles Rams.
One year later, the script seems to have flipped. Darnold is back in the playoffs, already with a postseason win to his name and now just one victory away from a Super Bowl 60 appearance.
At a glance, the numbers suggest little has changed. Darnold’s PFF overall grade dipped only slightly from 80.7 to 79.9, a marginal shift that hardly tells the full story. Where the difference shows up is in the moments that decide games. In key situations, Darnold has played with noticeably better poise, tilting outcomes in Seattle’s favor.
And while he has benefited from an elite defense that posted an NFL-best -0.13 EPA per play during the regular season, the Seahawks’ signal caller has done his part as well, helping deliver the No. 1 seed in the NFC and a trip to the conference championship game.
First and foremost, Darnold has become far more aggressive when it comes to pushing the ball downfield, and the payoff has been substantial.
Last season, he ranked fifth among 32 qualifying quarterbacks in PFF passing grade on play-action throws (88.0). His 10.3-yard average depth of target and 114.1 passer rating on those plays each ranked fourth league-wide.
Those were already strong numbers, but Darnold has taken them to another level in Klint Kubiak’s offense in 2025.
On play action this season, Darnold’s average depth of target jumped to 11.7 yards, which led the NFL. The separation was massive — the gap between Darnold and the second-ranked quarterback was the same as the gap between second and 10th. He also improved his passer rating to 118.0, and his 90.7 PFF passing grade on play-action throws led all quarterbacks.
With Seattle leaning on its defense and running game, efficiency and explosiveness in limited passing opportunities are essential. Darnold has delivered both, consistently punishing defenses that overcommit to stopping the run and capitalizing on play-action shots all season long.
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Darnold has become far more effective at avoiding negative plays. After being sacked 57 times in 2024, including the postseason, he has been taken down just 29 times this season to date. With the Vikings, he was sacked on 21.7% of his pressured dropbacks, which ranked 25th among quarterbacks. That figure has dropped to 15.4% this season, ranking 13th league-wide and representing a meaningful step forward in managing pressure.
Even if Darnold’s overall numbers have not changed much from 2024, his improved ability to capitalize on play-action opportunities and limit negative plays such as sacks may be enough to complement Seattle’s defense and push the Seahawks into Super Bowl contention.