Super Bowl Sunday is here.
Sun Yang greeted the Seahawks as they woke up Sunday morning at their hotel in San Jose, about nine miles from Super Bowl 60 at Levi’s Stadium in Santa Clara. The game site is located 45 miles south of the league’s Super Bowl headquarters in downtown San Francisco.
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The weather forecast for Sunday’s 3:30 p.m. start against the New England Patriots when the Seahawks take on the Vince Lombardi Trophy as the NFL champion: perfect. The weather will be sunny with a temperature of 65 degrees, speeds up to 9 mph, no rain, and the temperature will drop to 57 degrees by the end of the race.
The field, known as the NFL’s best grass field, should be perfect, too.
Pro Bowl kickoff returner and wide receiver Rasheed Shahid posted a photo Saturday of Seattle visiting the stadium the day before the game. The rival Seahawks occupied the San Francisco 49ers’ home locker room at Levi’s Stadium, where Seattle won the NFC West title and the top seed in the divisional playoffs last month.
The News Tribune on the keys to the Seahawks’ second Super Bowl win in the franchise’s 50-year history:
The Golden Gate Bridge is seen ahead of Super Bowl 60 as the Seattle Seahawks and New England Patriots prepare to face off in San Francisco, California on Thursday, February 5, 2026.
(Brian Hayes/bhayes@thenewstribune.com)
Sam Darnold remains unchanged
Sam Darnold made the Pro Bowl with a 4,000-yard passing season and emerged as the league’s best deep pass shooter this season.
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He committed a league-leading 20 turnovers during the regular season and failed to make the Pro Bowl.
Yet over the past four games, Darnold has committed as many turnovers as you have in the NFL. Seattle has zero wins en route to its first division title since 2020. The 49ers have zero division playoff blowouts. Zero-zero beat the Los Angeles Rams to capture the NFC Championship and advance to Sunday’s Super Bowl.
As his injured left oblique muscle healed last Thursday and Friday, and he practiced fully for the first time since Jan. 15, Darnold looked comfortable heading into the Super Bowl.
“The biggest thing for me as a quarterback is understanding the situation. The first-and-second stuff, being able to understand, okay, why are we calling it a play?” Darnold said. “My checking position. Is there some protection where they might eat the (pass rush) (running) back and the back might not be able to get out (with his passing pattern) and I have to throw it to the receiver or just throw it over his head? Or, is the back able to get out and I can look for him faster on the check.
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“And then by the third round, being able to go through my process and understand why we were calling the game.”
Darnold said having one of the league’s top scoring defenses allows him to be content throwing the ball away, even on third down situations, rather than putting the ball in danger by trying to force the game into tight pass coverage.
“That’s the benefit of having a great defense,” Darnold said. “Especially the second half of the season, I always felt like I never really had to force anything.”
The Seahawks entered this game confident that the Patriots wouldn’t drive the length of the field multiple times to score multiple touchdowns on the No. 1 defense. The Seahawks defense can win them this Super Bowl if Darnold doesn’t get the ball to quarterback Derek Meyer and New England on a short field already in scoring position.
New England Patriots quarterback Derek Meyer and Seattle Seahawks quarterback Sam Darnold speak during the opening ceremony of the Super Bowl at the San Jose Convention Center on Monday, February 2, 2026 in San Jose, California.
Kenneth Walker first and second offense
Kenneth Walker will play the final game of his contract in this Super Bowl. Rarely does a lead back who is so integral to a championship game team’s offensive scheme take the field after a game.
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There won’t be a more personally motivated player on the field Sunday. The 25-year-old is playing for his career.
Did the Seahawks offer Walker a new contract or even make contact with him?
“As far as I know, no,” Walker told TNT in San Jose this week.
He said the same thing last summer.
“I feel like we’re more focused on this season and winning the Super Bowl,” Walker said.
If the 1,000-yard back can run big in the first and second rounds like he did in the first two games of the preseason, offensive coordinator Clint Kubiak will have the entire playbook at his disposal in the Seahawks’ final game. The third short meant Darnold was at his best, throwing passes on the move and containing a true running threat, neutralizing a Patriots pass rush that had 12 sacks in three AFC playoff games.
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Kubiak is expected to officially leave Seattle on Monday to become the head coach of the Las Vegas Raiders, with Walker taking over as head coach. a lot of. With that said, the running back who lost his job on Monday could become the Super Bowl MVP if the Seahawks win.
Seattle Seahawks running back Kenneth Walker III (9) runs off the field after three touchdowns against the San Francisco 49ers during an NFC divisional round game on Saturday, Jan. 17, 2026, at Lumen Field in Seattle.
Defending Derek Meyer’s campaign
The Patriots quarterback is the most unique and difficult threat the Seahawks defense has faced this season.
“He’s a running back who can also throw the ball,” Seattle general manager John Schneider said last week of the former UNC quarterback, whom the Seahawks and every other NFL team took a deep look at out of college a few years ago.
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Unlike Baker Mayfield (whose Buccaneers beat Seattle by 38 points at Ruman Field in October, with Darnold’s late fumble allowing Tampa Bay the game-winning field goal), Meyer won’t run to extend the throw. He runs and puts the ball under his arm and truck defenders. The New England quarterback injured his throwing shoulder two weeks ago in the AFC title game when he stiff-armed a Denver Broncos defender during a power run.
DeMarcus Lawrence, Leonard Williams, Byron Murphy, they’ve done a great job of putting pressure on the Seahawks’ quarterbacks this season. The success of the first four allowed coach Mike Macdonald to hold seven passes in coverage. Those numbers have been in Seattle’s favor all season.
But they easily allow quarterbacks to break containment on the edge and extend plays. If this happens in the Super Bowl, Meyer could be the game’s leading rusher. Meyer has 61 false starts this season. Nearly a third of those (18) have gained 10 yards or more.
Expect McDonald to put versatile safety Nick Emmanwori on Meyer, perhaps as a secondary spy behind Seattle’s defensive line, to run up and use his solid tackles to keep Meyer’s runs to 4 and 5 yards instead of 10 or more.
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That could be the difference between Seattle forcing a New England punt and the Patriots scoring a first down.
It’s the difference between the Seahawks parading through downtown Seattle and their third Super Bowl loss in four appearances.
Nick Emmanvory speaks on the Super Bowl at the San Jose Convention Center on Thursday, February 5, 2026, three days before Super Bowl 60 against the New England Patriots. Eman Worry injured his ankle in training on Wednesday but said he would be fit to play in the championship game.
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A more comfortable Darnold didn’t turn the ball over for the fifth straight game.
Walker’s performance in the Super Bowl was unprecedented, a 100-yard game with a touchdown and becoming the game’s MVP.
Eman Worry showed off his sprained ankle in Wednesday’s practice and stopped Meyer in a key matchup of the game.
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McDonald did, winning a Super Bowl regardless of level in the 38-year-old defensive wizard’s second season as head coach.
They do so decisively.
Seahawks 31, Patriots 10.