It’s been quite a year for Seattle Seahawks quarterback Sam Darnold, and his team is helping him celebrate the latest big milestone.
Darnold signed with the Seahawks last offseason, hoping to build on his surprise turnaround season with the Minnesota Vikings. After leading the Seahawks to the franchise’s second Super Bowl title, Darnold now notched another major accomplishment.
Sam Darnold Ties the Knot
The team took to social media this week to celebrate Darnold’s wedding, as he and longtime partner Katie Hoofnagle tied the knot. The Seahawks shared the news in a post on X, noting that he added a second ring.
“One year, two rings,” the team shared.
As the team noted in a story about Darnold’s wedding, the ceremony included some of the NFL star’s closest friends, including rival players.
“On Friday, April 3, Darnold and his wife Katie Hoofnagle hosted their wedding at Rancho Valencia Resort & Spa in Rancho Sante Fe, California,” the report noted. “The Super Bowl-winning quarterback and his wife hosted 227 of their closest friends and family at a ‘no-phone’ ceremony. Among the guests were Josh Allen, Hailee Steinfeld, Christian McCaffrey, Luke Kuechly, Christian Kirk, Cooper Kupp, Drew Lock, Eric Saubert, Brett Rypien and Adam Ray.”
Darnold and Hoofnagle told People magazine that it was a fun and low-key affair.
“A fun, energetic, upbeat weekend surrounded by friends and family from all chapters of our lives as individuals and a couple,” they said.
The report added that Darnold is mindful of his offseason obligations with the Seahawks as they start their Super Bowl defense, planning his honeymoon around practices.
“The newlyweds are currently celebrating their marriage with a ‘minimoon’ in Hawaii, and will later have a two-week-long honeymoon in Italy in June once football organized team activities end,” the report noted.
Sam Darnold Solidifies Spot Atop Depth Chart
At this time last season, Darnold appeared to have a tenuous hold on the No. 1 quarterback spot. Though he was coming off a career-best season with the Vikings, they had decided to go with J.J. McCarthy and allowed Darnold to leave in free agency.
There were still questions over whether Darnold’s wildly successful 2024 season was a fluke, and the Seahawks drafted Alabama quarterback Jalen Milroe as a potential successor. Some analysts predicted that Milroe would eventually take over for Darnold, but the veteran quarterback replicated his 2024 season while leading the Seahawks to an AFC West title and eventually a Super Bowl win.
Bleacher Report’s Alex Ballentine rated the “panic meter” at quarterback for all 32 NFL teams, putting the Seahawks among the lowest.
“Darnold had no problem carrying that momentum over to a championship season in Seattle,” Ballentine wrote. “The Seahawks dominant defense did some of the lifting, but Darnold made the offense explosive with the second-highest yards per attempt in the league.
“Seattle might not be able to depend on Darnold to have the week-to-week consistency of some of the most efficient quarterbacks. But he’s always going to be able to get hot enough to lead them on a postseason run. That’s a pretty good place to land after their big bet last offseason.”
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