Seahawks legend predicts Sam Darnold will top his career-best 2024 season with Seattle
Darnold, who threw for 4,319 yards and 35 touchdowns for a 14-3 Minnesota Vikings squad last season, must prove himself yet again with a different team this season after joining the Seahawks in free agency.
The expectations remain high for Darnold, but Shaun Alexander, the legendary Seahawks running back who won league MVP in 2005, thinks Darnold will check all the boxes this season.
"I think he's going to be better this year than he was last year with us, and I think they got the right offensive coordinator for him," Alexander told Fox News Digital after his work with USAA's "Salute to Service NFL Boot Camp" Monday. "I think the system looks right for him. They look great at practice."
Darnold reunites with Klint Kubiak, who served as offensive coordinator of the New Orleans Saints last season. They were together in 2023 with the San Francisco 49ers, where Kubiak served as pass game coordinator and Darnold was backing up Brock Purdy after a failed tenure with the Carolina Panthers.
It's a new-look offense in all aspects for the Seahawks, including at wide receiver with DK Metcalf shipped to the Pittsburgh Steelers in an offseason trade. Metcalf was a constant in the pass game for Seattle, but with the rise of Jaxon Smith-Njigba last season, they moved on and brought in Cooper Kupp, a move Alexander doesn't mind.
Combine the receiving weapons with the dynamic duo of Kenneth Walker and Zach Charbonnet in the backfield, and Alexander went bold with his prediction for the Seahawks.
"I'm still thinking that it's Seahawks 17-0," Alexander said, laughing.
Realistically, Alexander believes this is a playoff team. They missed it at 10-7 last year, but Alexander has them getting in this time.
"I think they're going to be 11-6," he said. "I think they're going to beat the right teams and shock somebody. I do know that it's going to be very hard to beat them at home. So, you get these things all equated, they're going to be a good team.
"Both Kenneth and Charbonnet healthy, that's a good duo. I like how they're using Sam in the offense. They're coming up with their scheme that does what he does best. Defense, I think their secondary is wonderful. When you got all that — guys start making plays on the D-line — it's going to be hard to beat them."
Darnold and the Seahawks will have a tough NFC West matchup against his former squad, the 49ers, Sept. 7 at home to kick off the 2025 campaign in front of "The 12s" for the first time.
APPRECIATING THOSE WHO SERVE US
While Alexander loved talking shop, he also loved meeting with men and women of the military through the USAA Salute to Service NFL Boot Camp, competing in drills similar to those the Seahawks Ring of Honor member did.
Alexander admired the competitiveness during the 40-yard dash, broad jump and more drills at the NFL Combine, calling the day "special."
He also has a special appreciation for the military given his own family ties. His second-oldest brother was a 22-year military veteran.
"I just thought of him as a hero. Like I have an older brother who's a hero. He protects the country," Alexander said of his brother.
"You can't undo what you were a part of. It's like, 'Man, I know what you're all doing, and I know you're grinding, and sometimes you want to stop and not do it. But you're a hero to somebody.' So, it's like a little 10-year-old kid that's like, 'Man, I'm going to give everything I got to go be great.' And thank you for doing that. Getting to share those kind of moments with the military is awesome."
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