The Seattle Seahawks are back on top of the football world with a 29-13 rout of the New England Patriots.
Seattle never trailed and often dominated. After grabbing a 3-0 lead on their first drive, the Seahawks slowly but surely pulled away. The defense was completely dominant, especially up front, as Drake Maye struggled to find anything downfield — and that was on the rare occasion he had time to even look downfield. Behind a superb effort from Kenneth Walker III, the Seattle offense did enough to create some separation. The Seahawks led 9-0 at halftime and 12-0 entering the fourth quarter. Finally, Sam Darnold hit AJ Barner for a touchdown, and a Uchenna Nwosu pick six put the game to bed.
The defense finished with six sacks. Through three quarters, Seattle out-gained New England 271-78. Though Maye eventually made some plays, the Seahawks were in control all game long.
It was a dominant effort from a dominant team. The Seahawks had a +246 point differential this regular season, the best by a Super Bowl champion since the 1999 Rams. Coach Mike Macdonald flexed his muscle as a defensive mastermind, and now, he’s the third-youngest Super Bowl-winning coach ever, only behind Sean McVay and Mike Tomlin.
Here’s who and what stood out — good and bad — in Super Bowl 60.
Winner: Kenneth Walker III, his agent, and his bank account
The first running back to win Super Bowl MVP since Terrell Davis in 1998, Walker was tremendous, finishing with 161 yards from scrimmage.
Walker can be a polarizing back, with his incredible tackle-breaking sometimes only superseded by his belief that he can break every tackle. This season, among 52 players with at least 100 carries, he was seventh in explosive rush rate … and 46th in rushing success rate.
But on Super Bowl Sunday, we saw just how valuable that explosiveness can be. He had five carries of 10+ yards.
Walker is 27. He’s rarely been an every-down player. But after Zach Charbonnet went down with a torn ACL in the divisional round, Walker stepped up:
- 145 yards from scrimmage, three touchdowns in divisional round vs. 49ers
- 111 yards from scrimmage, one touchdown in NFC Championship vs. Rams
- 161 yards from scrimmage in Super Bowl vs. Patriots
Walker is an impending free agent. Both Walker and coach Mike Macdonald have said they want Walker back in Seattle, and with Charbonnet coming off a major injury, there’s a natural fit. Regardless, Walker has boosted his profile significantly over the past month ahead of his first time being a free agent. Expect a competitive market — and, in turn, a nice payday — for the Super Bowl MVP.
Loser: The Patriots’ offensive line — especially the youngsters
If there’s one clear area in which New England looked like the 13-loss team it was in 2024, it was the offensive line. It was a completely remade group that was certainly improved but not quite championship-caliber yet.
Rookie left tackle Will Campbell, the No. 4 pick, got a rude introduction to playoff football. Rookie left guard Jared Wilson also had plenty of tough moments, as did veteran center Garrett Bradbury. The right side of the line — veteran right tackle Morgan Moses and right guard Mike Onwenu — was much better.
Campbell has to improve. It’s an absolute must given his draft slot. We’ll see what upgrades New England makes elsewhere.
Winner: Sam Darnold
We won’t try to spin this: Darnold did not play well. He missed some throws he should have made, he tried to make some throws he shouldn’t have, and he got lucky when several dangerous throws fell harmlessly to the ground. The stats are not particularly inspiring: 19-for-38, 202 passing yards (5.3 yards per attempt), one touchdown.
But Darnold is a Super Bowl champion. He’s the first starting quarterback to win a Super Bowl on the fifth (or later) team in his career. He did not commit a single turnover all postseason after having an NFL-high 20 in the regular season.
Trying to picture “Sam Darnold: Super Bowl champion” was impossible when he was with the New York Jets or the Carolina Panthers or the 49ers. But we don’t even have to go back that far: After a tremendous season with the Minnesota Vikings ended with a disastrous flameout, he was cast aside once again. Was his 2024 a mirage? Was his playoff disaster the real Darnold?
No. The “real” Darnold is now a Super Bowl champion. What an incredible, unlikely path.
Loser: Mike Vrabel and Josh McDaniels
Vrabel had several questionable decisions, including …
- not going for two down 19-6
- not going on fourth-and-3 at the Patriots’ own 39 down 9-0
- not going on fourth-and-1 at the Patriots’ own 41 down 12-0
But when a team’s coach is the CEO type — not one who calls the offense or defense — his coordinators have to be excellent. Vrabel’s offensive coordinator, McDaniels, got beaten. Too often, his overmatched offensive line was left out to dry. Maye’s athleticism wasn’t on display enough. With two weeks to prepare, Macdonald pulled several tricks out of his bag. It didn’t feel like McDaniels did the same.
Winner: Mike Macdonald
In the battle of the “MIke” head coaches, Macdonald throttled Vrabel. Macdonald’s defense was absolutely overwhelming. Yes, there was a massive talent differential, but there was a massive scheme differential between Macdonald’s defense and Josh McDaniels’ offense. Macdonald got creative with his blitzing schemes. Four different players had at least one sack. Seven different players had at least one quarterback hit.
Macdonald didn’t play in the NFL. He didn’t even play college football. After a spell as a Georgia assistant during which he earned his master’s degree, he nearly took a job in the financial world.
Then he got a spot with the Baltimore Ravens in 2014. He rose all the way to defensive coordinator. And now he’s not only a Super Bowl champion but one of the brightest and best coaches in the game. He’s 38 years old. He’ll have to replace his offensive coordinator with Klint Kubiak off to the Las Vegas Raiders, but he has the defense of his dreams. What a climb.
Loser: Drake Maye
Whenever — or if ever — Maye watches film from this game, he’ll rue several missed opportunities. Yes, he was under siege all game, and we’ll get to that in a bit. But Maye missed several throws he could have made and normally does make. He looked flustered, and just when he appeared to get some semblance of rhythm, he threw an awful interception that all but sealed the game.
Maye finished 27-for-43 for 295 yards, two touchdowns and two interceptions (including a pick six by Uchenna Nwosu). He got sacked six times and lost a fumble. His -0.40 expected points added per dropback was the second-worst mark of his season, only “ahead” of his divisional round win against the Houston Texans.
Maye took 21 sacks in the postseason, most in the playoffs. He had eight turnovers — four interceptions, four fumbles lost — in the playoffs, too. There is no doubt that the future is extremely bright. There is no doubt that this was a magical season. But there’s also no doubt he and his surroundings must improve.
Winner: The Seahawks defense
If you didn’t know them then, you should now. The Seahawks defense isn’t stacked with superstars or household names to the average fan, but maybe this game will change that.
- Devon Witherspoon — PFF’s top-rated cornerback and a second-team All Pro — had a sack and three quarterback hits. He runs like a cornerback and tackles like a linebacker. He is everything you could want in a football player.
- Ernest Jones IV had a team-high 11 tackles. He was also a second-team All-Pro, and now he has two Super Bowl rings, too.
- Derick Hall and Byron Murphy II both had two sacks. Nwosu had an interception returned for a touchdown.
- Leonard Williams has had a career rebirth in Seattle, making Pro Bowls each of the last two seasons.
- After signing with Seattle, DeMarcus Lawrence showed love for his former team, the Dallas Cowboys, but added he knew he couldn’t win a Super Bowl there. It turns out he found the place he could.
- Nick Emmanwori is awesome. He runs like a cornerback, he hits like a linebacker (have we heard that phrase before?), and as a rookie, he added tremendous versatility to Macdonald’s unit.
Loser: Fans of offense and aggressive play calling
Yes, the game ended with 42 points and three offensive touchdowns. But this was a slog for a long time. The Patriots were shut out in the first half. Teams without a point in the first half of a Super Bowl are now 0-15. Neither Maye nor Darnold was close to their “A” game.
There was conservative play calling from both sides — not unexpected given both coaches are defensive-minded, and the game was dominated by the defense — and poor execution. Some of it was defense-induced, but both offenses left something to be desired.
Winner: The Patriots’ secondary — especially the youngsters
For the frustrations with the youngsters on the offensive line, the Patriots must be ecstatic with how their core players in the secondary look. Christian Gonzalez was tremendous this postseason and especially in the Super Bowl. Early numbers say Gonzalez was the primary defender on seven passes, and he allowed just three completions for 36 yards. He made a phenomenal deep pass breakup that was one of few first-half highlights for New England.
Rookie Craig Woodson was also terrific, especially in the run game. That’s been a constant all season. The fourth-round pick had a team-high 10 tackles, including three for loss.
Loser: Stefon Diggs
Diggs waited 178 games (including playoffs) to make the Super Bowl, with several close misses along the way. When he finally got there, he got smothered: three catches for 37 yards. He also found himself on the wrong end of a fracas with Josh Jobe.
It was a remarkable comeback season from Diggs, but it was an unsatisfactory ending.
Winner: John Schneider
Schneider has now built the Seahawks into Super Bowl champions twice, and he did it with a different coach and an entirely different roster.
It wasn’t always a straightforward path. After building his first Super Bowl champion, Schneider had some misses in the draft. Then he absolutely crushed it. The 2022 draft produced six significant contributors to this championship team, including Walker. The 2023 draft — thanks to the Russell Wilson trade — had Witherspoon and Smith-Njigba. The 2024 draft brought defensive lineman Byron Muphy II and AJ Barner, who scored the first touchdown of the game. The 2025 draft brought Grey Zabel and Nick Emmanwori.
But don’t forget about trades that brought in Rashid Shaheed, Leonard Williams and Ernest Jones IV. Don’t forget he took a chance on Darnold. Don’t forget he moved on from Geno Smith and DK Metcalf this offseason. You don’t become a Super Bowl champion without risks — big and small — from a personnel perspective. Schneider pressed the right button over and over again.
Winner: The happy couple!
Yes, that was a real wedding during Bad Bunny’s halftime show. And I loved Bad Bunny as a whole, though I wish we got more “DtMF.”
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