Sam Darnold Gets Honest About New York Jets Fans
Sam Darnold was touted as a star quarterback who could lead an NFL team to the promised land when he came out of USC in 2018.
Darnold fulfilled that promise of leading a team to a Super Bowl victory - just not the team that drafted him.
The New York Jets drafted Darnold third overall, and he struggled in his first three seasons. His Jets tenure is best encapsulated by the 33-0 loss to Tom Brady and the New England Patriots on Oct. 21, 2019, in which he threw four interceptions. During that game, Darnold was caught saying, “I’m seeing ghosts,” and that quote followed him for the next five years.
The Jets traded Darnold to the Carolina Panthers in April 2021, and he slowly rebuilt himself. He has credited his 2023 season as a backup with the San Francisco 49ers as the turning point, and he officially rejuvenated his NFL career by leading the Minnesota Vikings to a 14-3 record in 2024, throwing for 4,319 yards and 35 touchdowns.
The Seattle Seahawks signed Darnold as a free agent in March 2025, and he replicated his 2024 success: 4,048 yards, 25 touchdowns, and 14 interceptions on a career-high 67.7% completion, as the team went 14-3. Only this time, the Seahawks lifted the Lombardi Trophy in February - annihilating the Patriots in Super Bowl LX, a satisfying full-circle moment for Darnold.
So, what do those Jets fans have to say now?
“I was just in the training room getting worked on, and one of the athletic trainers was saying how her family friend - she went back to Jersey, where she’s from, and her family friends are Jets fans,” Darnold said on “Green Light with Chris Long” this week. “They’re like, ‘Tell Sam we say hi. We said hi to him after a game once.’ I was like, ‘OK, cool.’ Like, they didn’t have anything mean to say, but I was like, maybe they didn’t just say hi when they were in New York. Maybe they said some explicit words.”
Darnold added: “I love the fans in New York. I really did. Those fans are so loyal. At least when I was there, we didn’t have the best record. We weren’t winning a ton of games, and for them to - I felt like every home game, it was still really loud, and they showed up. They rooted us on, man. It’s kind of whatever it is right now, but it was just really awesome to be a part of that organization. The loyalty that I felt from the fan base was real.”
While Darnold and the Seahawks look to defend their Super Bowl title, the Jets still hold the longest active playoff drought among the four major North American sports leagues. Their last playoff win was on Jan. 16, 2011.
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This story was originally published May 29, 2026 at 8:02 PM.