Super Bowl LX takeaways: Defense carries Seahawks to dominant win over Patriots

Seattle also had six sacks — one shy from tying the Super Bowl record — as it constantly put Patriots quarterback Drake Maye under pressure all night. With a defensive-minded head coach in Mike Macdonald leading the way and becoming the third-youngest HC to win the Super Bowl at 38 years old, it was only fitting that the Seattle defense punctuated a historically dominant season with one last statement.

Sam Darnold makes history with first Super Bowl win

Darnold was only 19-of-38 for 202 yards and one TD, but he did not have to be special for Seattle to win its second Lombardi Trophy. 

He had a lot at stake entering the game as someone who had constantly been doubted in high-pressure situations, but he is now in the history books as the only QB to win a Super Bowl after playing with at least five teams, finishing the postseason with zero combined turnovers in each of Seattle's games.

You don't always have to be the star of a game to make the biggest impact. That was certainly the case for Darnold in Super Bowl LX as he took care of the ball and did all the little things well to lead his team to a historic victory.

Kenneth Walker III's MVP one of several notable achievements from other players

Even when the rest of the offense was struggling, Walker did the heavy lifting, finishing the night with 27 carries for 135 yards — 94 of which came in the first half. He becomes the first RB to win the award since Hall of Famer Terrell Davis in 1998.

Aside from Walker, kicker Jason Myers put together a worthy MVP performance himself with a Super Bowl-record five made field goals, while wide receiver Cooper Kupp joins Hall of Famer Jerry Rice as the only WRs in league history to win an Offensive Player of the Year award and multiple Super Bowls.

Offensive struggles doom Patriots

For most of the game, New England went toe-to-toe with Seattle defensively, only giving up nine points in a rough first half from both sides offensively. 

Until a couple of TD strikes in the fourth quarter, Maye struggled immensely, going 27-of-43 for 295 yards with two TDs and three turnovers (one fumble, two interceptions). To make matters worse, Maye finished the postseason with 21 sacks, which surpassed Joe Burrow's 19 sacks from the 2021 season for the most in one postseason, according to the NBC broadcast.

Head coach Mike Vrabel completely turned this franchise around in Year 1, but it was not on the same level as the Seahawks on Sunday night.