First impressions can be hard to shake for anybody, let alone NFL quarterbacks playing in their first games at the highest level of the sport. Sam Darnold's began on the most problematic note imaginable, as he threw a pick-six on his very first pass attempt in the league. That was a long time ago, though - and Darnold is a dramatically different quarterback today than he was then.
Unfortunately, it seems many fans (and analysts) have frozen their initial impression of Darnold into place - and no amount of evidence that he's grown into a great competitor will convince them otherwise. Darnold's struggles in his last two games with the Minnesota Vikings in 2024 only opened the door for all those flawed takes to come storming back to dominate the narrative about his game.
Here's someone who knows better. Daniel Jeremiah was recently a guest on the Brock & Salk show and talked about how some folks are determined not to see anything good in Darnold - which is actually much the same problem that Geno Smith had.
All Darnold can do is continue to develop and play better and better - eventually unbiased observers will catch on that he's changed and the old rules about his game no longer apply.
That said, Geno Smith's disappointingly small contract with the Raiders is continuing proof that it's extraordinarily difficult to overcome a tough start in this league. Hopefully Darnold will have more luck and Seahawks fans at least give him a fair chance to earn the role of franchise QB.
