In a thrilling finish at State Farm Stadium, the Seattle Seahawks secured a 23-20 victory over the Arizona Cardinals on Thursday night, thanks to the composure of quarterback Sam Darnold and a clutch 52-yard field goal by Jason Myers as time expired.
After Arizona rallied from a 14-3 deficit to tie the game with 17 straight points in the fourth quarter, Darnold orchestrated a critical final drive. Starting at their own 40-yard line with 23 seconds left, he connected with Jaxon Smith-Njigba on a perfectly placed 22-yard back-shoulder throw down the left sideline, setting up Myers’ game-winner two plays later. “Sam made a perfect throw, honestly,” Smith-Njigba said. “The corner was on top of me, so he just placed it perfectly, and it was an easy grab.”
The duo nearly sealed the game on the previous drive with a 36-yard strike down the right sideline, but Myers’ 53-yard field goal attempt sailed wide right, allowing Arizona to tie the score.
The Cardinals’ subsequent kickoff failed to reach the landing zone, giving Seattle prime field position at their 40. Darnold capitalized, showcasing the poise that has defined his strong start in Seattle. “Sam’s playing out of his mind right now,” head coach Mike Macdonald said. “He’s such a cool customer, a guy on a mission to make us a great team and offense.”
Darnold, who signed a three-year, $100.5 million deal with the Seahawks in March after a trade sent Geno Smith elsewhere, is delivering under pressure. The contract includes an out after one season, but Darnold’s performance—18 of 26 for 242 yards, one touchdown, and a 3-1 record through four games—suggests he’s here to stay. He’s thrown five touchdowns against two interceptions, displaying elusiveness and playmaking ability.
In the second quarter, he scrambled right and hit rookie tight end Elijah Arroyo for a 32-yard gain, then took off for a 24-yard run on a bootleg. Those plays set up a Zach Charbonnet touchdown that gave Seattle a 14-3 halftime lead. “I’m really happy he came down with that one,” Darnold said of Arroyo’s catch, “because I had 20 yards of green grass in front of me.”
Despite their control, the Seahawks squandered chances to pull away earlier. Coby Bryant fumbled an interception back to Arizona, Julian Love dropped a potential pick, and a taunting penalty by Kenneth Walker III pushed Seattle out of field goal range.
Arizona capitalized, scoring touchdowns on back-to-back fourth-quarter drives to knot the game. Yet Darnold and Smith-Njigba, who finished with four catches for 79 yards, stepped up when it mattered. Smith-Njigba, second in the NFL with 323 receiving yards entering Week 4, has emerged as a star. “Jax, man, one of the best receivers in the league,” safety Julian Love said. “People need to put some respect on his name.”
Darnold’s chemistry with Smith-Njigba was evident in their trust and execution. “He’s comfortable in those moments,” Darnold said, referencing their near-miss in the season opener against San Francisco, where a 40-yard completion to Smith-Njigba set up a chance to win, only for a strip-sack to end it.
On Thursday, they finished the job. Myers, despite his earlier miss, redeemed himself with the game-winner. “I golfed with him this offseason,” Darnold said of Myers. “He’ll hit a bad shot and come back and stripe the next one. He’s got that mentality.”
The game held extra significance for Darnold, who played at State Farm Stadium in the Vikings’ wild-card loss to the Rams last season, where he was sacked nine times. “It was just another game,” he said, downplaying the return. “We did a good job today, but there’s stuff to clean up. I’m going to enjoy this three-day break, watch some Ryder Cup, and get ready for next week.”
With a 3-1 start, Darnold and the Seahawks are proving they’re a force in 2025, blending resilience, big plays, and late-game heroics to outlast a tough Cardinals team.
