Darnold basks in 'special journey' to Super Bowl glory
Asked where he had found the belief to prosper on the NFL's biggest stage after being traded between five teams over eight years, Darnold responded: "It's easy. My teammates and my coaches."
"They believed in me ever since the beginning of training camp. That was our mindset every single day we came to work," said the 28-year-old, of his triumphant debut year in Seattle.
As green confetti fell across the Levi's Stadium, in Darnold's home state of California, the imposing 6ft 3in tall quarterback grew reflective.
"We did it. That was it. It has been such a special journey with these guys, so much hard work that has been poured into this. It was just job well done," he said.
Darnold was the third overall pick in a star-packed 2018 draft, chosen by the New York Jets ahead of Josh Allen and Lamar Jackson, and just behind Baker Mayfield.
This season, he became the first of those household-name NFL quarterbacks to even reach a Super Bowl -- and emerged comfortably victorious.
The journey was far from smooth. After struggling for three seasons in the harsh New York media spotlight, Darnold was traded to the Carolina Panthers for two more lackluster years.
His rebirth began with a season in San Francisco as backup to Brock Purdy, and accelerated with a 14-win campaign for the Minnesota Vikings in which he threw a career-high 35 touchdowns.
In a now-infamous decision, Minnesota decided to switch to their young quarterback prospect JJ McCarthy, and the Seattle Seahawks swooped in for Darnold last March.
"There's a lot of things that we saw in Sam that we loved, and he's lived up to those things -- and then some," Seahawks head coach Mike Macdonald had told AFP, in the days before Super Bowl LX.
"He's a resilient dude and a competitor. A winner."
- 'Unbelievable' -
At Sunday's NFL decider, Darnold threw for a touchdown and 202 yards, completing 19 of 38 attempts.
But in characteristic fashion, he paid credit to an all-round team performance.
"I've got to shout out our offensive line, tight ends, our receivers and of course our running backs for everything that they did tonight. It was special in the run game," he said.
The NFL has long been a brutal place for young quarterbacks, who can overnight go from the next big superstar to a busted flush.
But resilience, ambition and self-awareness are traits that Darnold has long exhibited, according to his high school coach Jaime Ortiz, who remembers his former student as a wildly gifted but quietly driven kid.
"It's unbelievable. Everything that has happened in my career, but to do it with this team, I wouldn’t want it any other way," said Darnold, on Sunday.
He added: "I'm just so happy for the guys in the locker room and the coaches who put out so much effort the whole season."