Seahawks Coach Praises Sam Darnold’s Coolness After Last-Minute Win: ‘Playing Out of His Mind’

Darnold hit Jaxon Smith-Njigba for a 22-yard completion to set up the game-winning field goal on Thursday against the Arizona Cardinals.

Sam Darnold #14 of the Seattle Seahawks looks to pass against the Arizona Cardinals during the third quarter of the game at State Farm Stadium in Glendale, Ariz., on Sept. 25, 2025. Christian Petersen /Getty Images

Seattle Seahawks quarterback Sam Darnold is a man on a mission.

Darnold’s 22-yard pass to wide receiver Jaxon Smith-Njigba set up the game-winning field goal against the Arizona Cardinals on Thursday Night Football, stifling the Cardinals’ 14-point 4th quarter comeback. Darnold is having something of a career renaissance after having a career year with the Minnesota Vikings in 2024 and signing a $100 million deal with the Seahawks this offseason. Head coach Mike Macdonald said Thursday that Darnold plays with a lot of determination.

“Sam’s playing out of his mind right now,” Macdonald said. “And you see him, he’s just such a cool customer. But he’s a guy on a mission. He’s just so determined for us to be a great team and a great offense, and he’s doing a great job leading us.”

Through 4 games, Darnold leads the NFL in passing yards with 905 (though it should be noted that this may in part be due to him having played the first game of week 4 already), and is tied for eighth in passing touchdowns with 5, against just 2 interceptions. He has been sacked just 6 times, one of the lowest numbers in the NFL.

Against the Cardinals, he completed 18 of 26 passes for 242 yards and a touchdown. He also had a single rush that went for 24 yards.

Darnold stepped up in the big moment for Seattle on Thursday. The Seahawks went into the fourth quarter with a 17–6 lead. But late in the game, the Cardinals scored touchdowns on back-to-back possessions to tie the game at 20. Seattle got a stroke of fortune on the ensuing kickoff when Arizona kicker Chad Ryland missed the landing zone by inches, setting the Seahawks offense up at their own 40-yard line. Two plays later, Darnold threw a pass to Smith-Njigba, who was running a fade route down the boundary. Smith-Njigba stopped running and leaped into the air to make the catch, then twisted his body towards the sideline through a tackle by Cardinals cornerback Max Melton. Kicker Jason Myers, who had just missed a field goal attempt that led to the game-tying touchdown, redeemed himself, kicking a 52-yarder to win the game.

Had that kick not made it, Macdonald noted that his team was ready to go to overtime.

“I’ve been on teams where ’the sky’s falling.‘ ... For us, it was just, ’all right, hey, look, we’re identifying the two-minute situation,'” he said, adding that defensive coordinator Aden Durde and the team were ready to go to overtime.

“Then Sam and Jax were just lights out, and just a great job overall,” he said.

Darnold put some of the cool-headedness his coach described into his postgame presser, talking about the confidence he had in himself and his teammates going into the final drive.

“At the end of the day, when you get in those two-minute situations, we run through those situations so much in practice,” Darnold said. “All I can do is just be me. Our guys go out there and not do too much, and just do whatever the play is called, and then if we’ve got to make an adjustment from there, we go from there.”

He also praised Smith-Njigba’s composure in big moments, which gave Darnold confidence when he needed a play.

“He’s just comfortable in those moments,” he said. “We have that rapport to where we can trust each other with different routes and kind of feeling leverage. ... In two-minute [situations] I feel like Jax does a really good job, but also, we’re going to have other ops for the other guys to be able to shine, and I know they'll get their opportunities.”