Let's Look at the Seahawks Ahead of Super Bowl LX
- Zak Drapeau
- 4 days ago
- 5 min read
by Zak Drapeau
Sportz Nation - 1/29/2026
Team Leaders
Passing
Sam Darnold
67.7% completion
4,048 pass yards
25 pass TDs
14 INTs
Rushing
Kenneth Walker
221 carries
1,027 rush yards
4.6 yards per carry
10, 20+ yard rushes
5 rush TDs
Receiving
Jaxon Smith Njigba
119 receptions
163 targets
1,793 rec yards
4.4 yards after catch average
10 rec TDs
Tackling
Ernest Jones IV
126 combined tackles
4 tackles for loss
5 interceptions
7 pass deflections
1 Touchdown
Sacks Uchenna Nwosu
Bryon Murphy II
Leonard Williams
7 sacks each
Pass Breakups
Riq Woolen
Josh Jobe
Nick Emmanwori
13 breakups each
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Best Team This Season?
The Seahawks finished the 2025 Regular Season tied for the best record in the NFL and a Top-5 defense as well. Currently on a 9-game win streak including their 2 playoff wins, the Seahawks' identity has been on defense where they rank #1 in points allowed. Tied for 7th in the league with 47 total sacks, their defense is so effective because of how balanced they are. Not being headlined by their secondary or defensive line, rather by it's complete build of a sure-tackling and athletic Front-7 in front of a youthful, energetic and ball-hungry Secondary.
In an NFL season that saw so many upsets and perennial contenders not even make the playoffs, you can make the argument that no team truly separated themselves this season, not even the two Super Bowl participants. So with such a great defense, how did Seattle not separate themselves? Well, Sam Darnold may have the spotlight on him over the next two weeks but he really doesn't deserve it after his 2025 season.
In the Regular Season, Darnold completed almost 68% of his passes for 4,048 yards, with 25 TDs and 14 INTs. He would also give up 3 fumbles which made him lead the league in total turnovers.
Statistically, Darnold had a bad year but that doesn't tell the whole story. It may have taken him a while but Darnold has been red hot to end the regular season and so far through the post season. In his last 3 games, Darnold has a 72% completion percentage, with 4 TDs and no turnovers. He may fit into the "Trent Dilfer" or "Jim McMahon " mold of a QB being carried to the Super Bowl by his defense, but when the bright lights came on Darnold has stepped up.
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How Did They Get Here?
The Seahawks are here because of their defense which starts with their 2nd-year Head Coach Mike Macdonald. Formerly a defensive wiz-kid known for his seasons leading the Ravens' defense, Macdonald came into Seattle in 2024 and has instantly made them a yearly threat for best defense.
Inheriting a very young and high-potential defense, Macdonald was the right man for the job and has optimized everyone in that unit along with bring the right kind of Nickel defense to Seattle. Almost a 3-4 hybrid blended into a 4-2-5, Macdonald's D-line of Leonard Williams and Byron Murphy hold the middle of the line with edge rushers Uchenna Nwosu and Demarcus Lawrence coming up the weak side rush position to confuse offensive lines.
With this confusing, intricate and unpredictable defensive line, rushing the passer is a chess game for the Seahawks. Never one to rush the same way twice, the Seahawks often will blend their blitzes with a press-heavy man coverage in the back end thanks to their trio of physical and athletic corners. Witherspoon, Woolen and Jobe are fantastic man cover corners that have full range to cover the field. Behind them, Coby Bryant is a great center fielding Safety while their rookie Safety Nick Emmanwori is their X, who patrols the middle of the field and will cover the flat or run to the line of scrimmage to tackle and running backs that bounce outside the Tackles.
All-in-all, the Seahawks defense is completely balanced, with a very smart play caller that doesn't miss much guiding them. They can rush the passer, stone wall running backs or stick on to receivers like white on rice.
Even the best defenses of all time can't do it themselves and need something on offense to push them over the edge. For Seattle, Jaxon Smith-Njigba has been the brightest light of their season with a ridiculous 119-1,793-10 stat line to lead the league in receiving yards. Smith-Njigba is rightfully the biggest threat on the team but in some ways, one of his best traits is the ability to overshadow a fantastic run game for the Seahawks.
The Seahawks ran the ball the 5th most of any team this season with an average of 29.8 attempts per game. Behind their two-headed attack between Kenneth Walker and Zach Charbonnet, the team ran for 2,096 rushing yards on over 500 carries to wear out the other team consistently and more importantly; control the tempo of the game. When a team is stifling your offense and then running the clock down on offense, it's very hard for the other team to get any momentum and score.
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Can Sam Darnold
Win a Super Bowl?
Everything comes down to this, can Sam Darnold lead a team to a Super Bowl victory? In short, yes he can especially if he continues his run of hot form like his NFC Championship performance, totaling 346 yards, 3 Touchdowns and no turnovers on 25/36 passing.
Was the NFC Championship a fluke though? Well, it was easily in his Top-3 games of the season and considering the stakes was likely his best. So let's go deeper, those 3 games that could arguably be Darnold's best of the season were:
Week 5 vs Buccaneers:
28/34, 341 yards, 4 TDs, 0 TOs
Week 8 @ Commanders:
21/24, 330 yards, 4 TDs , 0 TOs
NFC Championship vs Rams:
25/36, 346 yards, 3 TDs, 0 TOs
Three pretty great games right? Well... All 3 of these teams had defenses in the bottom half of the league in yards allowed per game, and were even worse when looking at just passing yards allowed.
Darnold may have had a great game last week against a subpar defense, but in 10 days he will be facing the Patriots' defense who were Top-10 in both yards allowed and passing yards allowed as well as Top-5 in points allowed in the regular season and have gotten even better in their 3 playoff games.
Darnold CAN win a Super Bowl. But in my opinion, he can't WIN this Super Bowl, his best hope is to play good enough that he can allow his defense to win the game for him. And they are certainly good enough to do just that.
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Make sure to stay tuned as we continue coverage of the 2026 NFL Super Bowl.
-Z.D. (@DrapeauZak on X)