Sam Darnold can inch closer to elite status if what John Schneider says is true

Whether or not Sam Darnold will truly reach the elite level of quarterback next season isn't exactly what Seattle Seahawks' general manager John Schneider said, but considering Darnold's name was already floated around as future potential elite status last season, the possibility is certainly there. 

Darnold has now strung together back-to-back campaigns of excellent football and quarterback play, even though his one-year stint with the Minnesota Vikings ended disappointingly, and some at times, very up-and-down play last season with the Seahawks. Generally speaking, Darnold has indeed resurrected his career thanks to those two seasons.

So while the debate over whether Darnold can truly turn himself into an elite NFL quarterback will stretch into next season, Schneider at least believes one thing is true: Darnold can be even better next year than he was last. The scary thing is, he most likely will be better. 

Seattle Seahawks' John Schneider is betting on Sam Darnold more than ever next season

It's a scary projection for the rest of the NFL, that is. The Seahawks were already the most complete team in the NFL last year, and despite some losses in free agency and holes that still need filling, the same roster is returning for the 2026-27 season, meaning virtually the same defense and offense, minus Kenneth Walker III. Yes, that is scary.

Darnold finished last season with 4,048 yards passing and a 25-to-14 touchdown-to-interception ratio, with a 99.1 passer rating. All in all, those are pretty outstanding numbers. Although Darnold may want to make a point to cut down on the turnovers next season, interceptions and fumbles alike. 

Still, Darnold did enough to prove to Schneider that the Seahawks are safe at quarterback for the foreseeable future. As it relates to the future, Schneider recently stated how he thinks Darnold will fare next season, and his confidence in Darnold was extremely high. 

"He’s going to be that much more comfortable from being around his team," Schneider said. "Just his relationship with Coop [Cooper Kupp] and Rashid [Shaheed]. Like, Rashid came in during the season, so that takes a minute to build chemistry. He gets another year with Jax (Jaxon Smith-Njigba), and we have a really cool tight end group — [Elijah] Arroyo and [A.J.] Barner did a great job. He can play even better."

Schneider is right about one thing, that's for sure: Another offseason to build further chemistry with his receiving corps, Shaheed especially, will only benefit Darnold next season. Darnold and Shaheed had to go off the fly after the mid-season trade last year. Now, both players have all summer and training camp to become truly acclimated with one another. 

Schneider's confidence in Darnold is everything a quarterback wants to hear, but it's also a call to challenge, to go beyond and raise what's already been achieved. For Darnold, that will be his mission next season. The pressure to defend a championship title is always present, but Darnold has done enough to silence his critics.

Now, all he needs is to play his way into another level of quarterback tiers: the elite tier. With a season even better than last, Darnold can achieve this.