Sam Darnold's message to Seahawks fans, teammates focused on one word

Sam Darnold was thankful as he addressed fans of the Seattle Seahawks at Lumen Field on Wednesday.

It was the start of the Seahawks championship parade after they beat the New England Patriots in Super Bowl LX.

It was perhaps not Darnold's best game — though he did throw for 202 yards and a touchdown with no interceptions — but he played a huge role in getting the Seahawks there.

The defense and special teams basically did the rest once the whistle blew last Sunday.

The Seahawks picked Darnold up this past offseason after he had a Pro Bowl season for the Minnesota Vikings. The Vikings wanted to move on to J.J. McCarthy, while the Seahawks were looking to replace Geno Smith.

They believed Darnold could be that replacement, and Darnold paid off Seattle's belief in him in a major way.

"I've talked a lot this last week about belief," Darnold said in his address to the crowd on Wednesday, according to Brady Henderson of ESPN. "A lot of people didn't believe in me, but it didn't matter because the ones that are close believed in me, including you all. I appreciate you all so much. That short list also includes [team owner] Jody Allen, [general manager] John Schneider, [coach] Mike Macdonald. I appreciate the belief you all had in me for signing me this past year.

"And last but certainly not least, these players, man, for believing in me. I wouldn't be here without these guys."

Sam Darnold paid off the Seattle Seahawks' belief in him

The Seahawks signed Darnold to a three-year, $100,500,000 contract, which included multiple incentives, per Spotrac.

That included a $500,000 incentive to make the playoffs, a $1 millon incentive to win in the divisional round, a $1.5 million incentive to win the NFC, and a $2.5 million incentive to win the Super Bowl.

Check, check, check and check.

Darnold earned his money, but as mentioned, he had help. The Seahawks defense was dominant in the Super Bowl, and all season long, Darnold had the benefit of an elite running game behind him, led by Kenneth Walker III and Zach Charbonnet.

Darnold finished the 2025 season with 4,048 yards and 25 touchdowns compared to 14 interceptions. He threw for 672 yards and five touchdowns with no interceptions in Seattle's Super Bowl run.