SANTA CLARA, Calif. — The victory cigar he held in his hand was blazing like a large wooden effigy on the penultimate night of Burning Man, creating a murky shield that obscured his smiling face. Jaxon Smith-Njigba, one of the best football players on the planet, was talking about the Seattle Seahawks’ most significant regular-season victory of the current decade — but he also had something to say about his quarterback.
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As the Seahawks’ star wide receiver spoke, it was very clear that he wasn’t just blowing smoke.
“Everybody’s been talking s—,” he said. “Everybody. Let me tell you something: Sam led us today. He was everything that we needed. It was awesome to be out there with him.
“I play for my teammates. And I love playing for 14.”
That’s 14 as in Sam Darnold’s jersey number, and the number of victories he produced for a Seattle team few outsiders viewed as a legitimate championship contender before the 2025 season began. The 14th victory was surely the sweetest: Seattle (14-3) stomped all over its NFC West rivals Saturday night at Levi’s Stadium, beating the San Francisco 49ers (12-5) by a 13-3 score in a game that decided the NFC’s top seed and the first-round playoff bye that comes with it.
It was an emphatic win for a Seah
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