Darnold, his Seahawks teammates and offensive coordinator Klint Kubiak, who coached him as an assistant in San Francisco, felt like a match made in heaven. Seattle’s offense soared during the regular season while the quarterback delivered the best football of his career.

The Jets knew Sam Darnold had elite talent, but even sources within the organization say he had to escape their dysfunctional franchise to manifest it.

The 23-year old Maye, the No. 3 overall pick in the 2024 draft, will be the second-youngest quarterback to start a Super Bowl. Ben Roethlisberger was the youngest to win one when he led Pittsburgh to a victory over Seattle in the 2005 season.

#Vikings RB Aaron Jones on how different the season would be if Sam Darnold was in Minnesota: “I felt like we had everything we needed (last year), but we are not GM’s, that’s outside of us. When you got a group of guys behind a QB, and he wants to stay somewhere, I think you… pic.twitter.com/aKFHr6DsKa

Minnesota Vikings star running back Aaron Jones ripped into the team over their Sam Darnold decision last offseason.

But Sam Darnold is the first quarterback from the class to make the Super Bowl. Darnold's turnaround has been astonishing. The No. 3 overall pick in 2018, Darnold flamed out after three years with the New York Jets and got traded to the Carolina Panthers.

The Minnesota Vikings cut ties with Sam Darnold after last year, and Aaron Jones shared a sobering take on letting him walk.