Sam Darnold experienced a career resurgence in Minnesota in 2024 before leading the Seahawks to a Super Bowl victory in his first campaign out west. While his production didn't necessarily translate to fantasy football success, is there room for Darnold to rack up more statistical production in 2026?

Ian Hartitz dives into Sam Darnold's fantasy football value ahead of 2026 as part of his overarching Seattle Seahawks Team Preview for the upcoming season.

Just how great was Sam Darnold last season?

• QB1: Sam Darnold (QB23 in our consensus fantasy football rankings)
• QB2: Drew Lock
• QB3: Jalen Milroe

Amazing—particularly in the first half of the season. Overall, Darnold posted objectively great marks in EPA per dropback (+0.16, 11th), success rate (53.3%, 4th), and completion percentage over expected (+5.2%, 4th), looking every bit like one of the game's best pure throwers of the football along the way.

Unfortunately, Darnold's real-life success didn't overly translate to fantasy land. His status as last season's QB25 (13.9 fantasy points per game) reflects the reality that there's a low ceiling for the relatively immobile veteran inside the league's seventh-most run-heavy offense in dropback rate over expected.

Sam Darnold Fantasy Football Outlook For 2026

The bull case here is that the team's new playcaller and backfield result in more of a pass-first approach in 2026; either way, Darnold is more of a one-QB league streamer option and mid-round superflex target than someone the majority of drafters should be going out of their way for.

Also note: Drew Lock is the next man up should Darnold miss any game action. … Jalen Milroe obviously doesn't have a realistic path to starting football games anytime soon, but the dual-threat Alabama product has the sort of skill set to perhaps enjoy a Malik Willis-esque career trajectory. I'm a fan of stashing these sorts of fantasy-friendly quarterbacks in dynasty when possible.

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