There doesn’t seem to be any worry about Sam Darnold’s lingering oblique injury headed into Super Bowl 2026.
Darnold himself told reporters that his oblique “feels great” during Super Bowl Opening Night and a report by ESPN’s Jeff Darlington indicated that the Seahawks aren’t expressing any concern over it.
The Seahawks QB had been listed as limited twice during the injury reports put out by the team last week, but Darnold’s performances in the postseason while dealing with the issue have assuaged the team’s worries heading into their showdown with the Patriots.
Sam Darnold is still dealing with the oblique injury that has limited in practice leading into each of the last two playoffs wins — but his performances have lessened concern about how the injury will impact the Super Bowl.
More on where it stands: pic.twitter.com/r7kL6lr0xs
— Jeff Darlington (@JeffDarlington) February 3, 2026
“The last two games that Darnold has played in, he has taken pain-killing shots before those games and didn’t really practice very much leading up to them,” Darlington reported Monday night. “Darnold himself has made it very clear that he was never concerned about his ability to play in those games and to do so at a high level. [General manager] John Schneider, [head coach] Mike Macdonald both saying that they were so impressed with the way Darnold handled all of it.
“He was never nervous, never concerned. He was full go all along. They were always kind of wondering whether he would be at that full capacity and he was, so they have no concern going into this game. They’ll probably continue to limit his throws, but every week that he is getting further away from that injury, he continues to feel closer to 100 percent.”
Darnold is coming off an NFC Championship game performance in which he completed 25 of 36 passes for 346 yards and three touchdowns in an exciting 31-27 win over the Rams.
He threw for for 124 yards and a touchdown in a lopsided 41-6 win over the 49ers in the Divisional Round.
Darnold has been one of the biggest storylines heading into the Super Bowl, considering the turnaround he has had during his career over the past two years, first with the Vikings and now with the Seahawks.
