Quarterback debates do not get bigger than this.
Sam Darnold vs. Drake Maye.
Same game. Same stage. Two quarterbacks who took completely different routes to get here.
One guy has played for five different teams in eight seasons, and the other guy was arguably the NFL MVP this year in only his second season, and playing for a brand new coach.
Both QB’s ended up at the Super Bowl this year, but the contrast between them is pretty stark. Let’s break it down.
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Two QBs, One Massive Stage
At first glance, these two should not even be in the same sentence.
Different ages. Different draft classes. Different everything – well at least on the surface.
If you dig deeper, you’ll find some overlap.
Both have big arms. Both can move. Both are comfortable throwing into super tight windows that make all coaches and fans nervous. Both were once labeled “franchise saviors” by fans, and both also learned very quickly that the NFL does not care about your label. They care about what you actually deliver out on the football field.
Sam Darnold: The Redemption Arc No One Saw Coming
Sam Darnold’s career has been a long lesson in how fast things can go sideways.
There was a LOT of hype around him early on, then he dealt with a few terrible situations, several coaching changes, team changes, moved from the east coast to the west coast, and his fans eventually grew tired trying to defend him (rightfully so).
The dream of being a star QB in the NFL was pretty much over for Sam.
I thought that. You thought that. And you know he thought that. There was no evidence to suggest his career would randomly become awesome.
But yet, here he is about to play in the Super Bowl.
How Sam Darnold Can Win the Super Bowl
The key with Darnold is simple. He does not need to be SPECIAL to win this game. He just needs to be functional. On time with throws. Accurate. Calm. When he plays like this, he succeeds, time and time again. Hell, any QB would succeed. That’s fundamental football.
When you try to become a player that you aren’t, is when you usually fail.
If Sam Darnold can just avoid the urge to try and become Brett Favre 2.0 and throw the rock 150 mph down field into triple coverage instead of getting an easy 2-4 yards on a check down pass to Kenneth Walker III, then the offense should definitely have success against the Patriots.
He has seen every blitz look and coverage disguise imaginable over his career. The only danger is when he tries to do more than the play requires, or than what he’s capable of doing as a player, from purely a talent standpoint.
Drake Maye: The Ultimate QB Prospect
Drake Maye has everything you want in a QB. Arm strength. Mobility. Confidence that occasionally borders on reckless (which is either
terrifying or incredible depending on the result).
He also had the highest completion percentage this year on deep throws. He’s that guy.
He often plays overly confident. Aggressive. Throws deep balls on the run. Hits tight windows.
Sometimes he’s brilliant. Sometimes he’s terrible.
This is a nightmare scenario for defensive coordinators because they can’t predict anything with Drake Maye, and one broken play can flip a game instantly. Against a disciplined defense like the Seahawks, patience will be the real test for Maye, and if he hunts for “hero plays” instead of taking easy yards, then I can see things unraveling quickly for the Patriots in Super Bowl LX.
But if Drake Maye can simply keep his composure when adversity hits (because it 1000% will), then his talent can absolutely get him a ring. It’s just much easier said than done.
The Super Bowl stage might legitimately be too big for some players, you really never know.
These elite athletes ARE humans at the end of the day and deal with emotions just like you and me.
Seattle Seahawks vs. New England Patriots Defense
At the end of the day, I firmly believe each team’s defense will decide the majority of the outcome in Super Bowl LX.
Darnold throws dimes, but he also relies heavily on YAC with receivers like JSN making big time runs after the catch all season long. Darnold’s season average per pass attempt this year was only 8.5 yards, so if the opposing defense struggles tackling in space, then that favors him heavily because you know his receivers will get the ball in their hands with his top-10 accuracy
percentage on the year.
Drake Maye usually thrives when defenses overcommit. Blitz-heavy teams, like Seattle, will give any QB more chances to hit explosive plays, but if the Seahawks play a more conservative game on defense with less blitzing, it may benefit them.
Maye has shown struggles at times during the year playing against schemes like this, like when he went against the Bills, Chargers, and Texans this year. All teams who show a lot of blitzes, but don’t actually bring them nearly as much as you’d think. Those teams mentioned also play man-to-man coverage very often, but the Seahawks play a lot more zone, which could very
well benefit Drake Maye in the Super Bowl, substantially, as he’s shown to struggle against man coverage this year.
Who Actually Has the Edge?
Right now, I believe the edge goes to Sam Darnold.
Not because he is more talented, but because he has more experience and the Seattle Seahawks defense is no joke.
They say defense wins championships, and I couldn’t agree more.
The better your defense is, the more calm your QB can play, and the more calm QB usually prevails in big time moments in big time games.
Also, although Darnold hasn’t actually played in a super bowl, he went to one recently with the 49ers and knows what that atmosphere feels like. Drake Maye has no idea yet. I wouldn’t be surprised at all if you see the Seahawks defense AGGRESSIVELY get after Drake Maye in the first few drives and cause a turnover of some sort.
You already know that building is going to be ROCKING with Seahawks fans since the game is so close to the PNW. Drake Maye might end up the better quarterback long term, but Super Bowls are not won on potential. They are won on execution.
My Final Take
My gut feeling says the Seattle Seahawks win this game 27-17.
Seattle’s defense has so many veterans who have been BALLIN’ lately and Mike Macdonald has an elite defensive mind. No one can argue that.
The only reason I think the Patriots will score 17 is because I just know something flukey will happen early on.
I don’t know what it is, but it seems like the underdog in any big sporting event always gets one or two BIG fluke plays early on that lead to points, but then the better team always prevails over the rest of the game. I’ve seen this happen hundreds of times in my life. The 1st quarter usually means nothing to me.
But at the end of the day, I just can’t see Drake Maye and that Patriots offense being able to overpower that Seattle defense and the Seahawks will come out victorious.
Congratulations, Sam Darnold. You did it.