GM wants Darnold to be Seahawks QB ‘for a long time’

Quarterback Sam Darnold still has two years remaining on the three-year, $100.5 million contract he signed with the Seattle Seahawks last offseason. And under general manager John Schneider, the Seahawks have a longstanding policy of not giving contract extensions to players who have more than one season left on their deal.

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So, even after a Pro Bowl campaign and helping lead the franchise to a Super Bowl title, it seems highly unlikely that Darnold could receive a new deal from Seattle this offseason.

Earlier this week, Schneider seemed to provide further confirmation of that.

According to The Athletic’s Michael-Shawn Dugar, Schneider was asked Tuesday at the NFL combine whether he’d have discussions with Darnold’s representatives about the quarterback’s contract.

“Sam signed a three-year deal,” Schneider said.

In short, don’t expect the Seahawks to make an exception for Darnold.

However, Schneider said Wednesday that he’d like the 28-year-old Darnold to be Seattle’s quarterback “for a long time.” That came during an appearance on The Rich Eisen Show, in response to a question over whether the Seahawks will “do anything” with Darnold’s contract this offseason.

“We want him to be our quarterback for a long time, for sure,” Schneider said. “I mean, he came in and fit in just like seamless. … To see him come in and just fit in right away and be that humble, tough leader. He’s just got a real cool way about him.”

Darnold finished fifth in the NFL in passing yardage (4,048), second in yards per pass attempt (8.5) and tied for seventh in completion rate (67.7%) this past season. He also committed a league-high 20 turnovers, but closed with four consecutive turnover-free games from Week 18 through the Super Bowl.

Darnold had likely the best performance of his career in the NFC title game, making a slew of big-time throws while passing for 346 yards, three touchdowns and no interceptions in Seattle’s 31-27 win over the archrival Los Angeles Rams.

Darnold is set to carry a $37.9 million salary cap hit for 2026, which is currently the 12th-highest among quarterbacks, according to Spotrac.com.

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