Top 38 Quotes & Sayings by Sam Darnold

Explore popular quotes and sayings by an American athlete Sam Darnold.
Last updated on April 15, 2025.
Sam Darnold

Samuel Richard Darnold is an American football quarterback for the Carolina Panthers of the National Football League (NFL). He played college football at USC, where he won the 2017 Rose Bowl as a freshman, and was selected third overall by the New York Jets in the 2018 NFL Draft. At age 21, he was the NFL's youngest opening-day starting quarterback since the AFL–NFL merger. Darnold served as the Jets' starter from 2018 to 2020 until he was traded to the Panthers in 2021.

New York is kind of like L.A. If I walk around, not everyone is going to notice me because not everyone watches football, especially in New York. But I feel like everyone in Jersey is a Jets fan, and I always get recognized here.
Obviously, people say offense wins games, defenses win championships. But I think, at the end of the day, if you score more points than the other team, you're going to win.
I definitely take notes, but I feel like sometimes if I take too many notes, it kind of bogs down my mind a little bit. So, I just write down stuff that I need to remember for the game.
For us, it's about winning. How do you do that? You score more points than the other team. — © Sam Darnold
For us, it's about winning. How do you do that? You score more points than the other team.
You never plan on losing double-digit games in a season. You don't plan on losing any.
It's been a dream of mine to play in the NFL, so whenever I hear my name being talked about in someone's mock draft or whether or not he should stay or go, it's always interesting to listen to, but at the same time, I don't take it for granted.
A lot of kids, especially football players, had been using Twitter for recruiting.
Whenever you put so much time and effort into one single game, and you go out there and lose, it sucks.
I think every kid who wants to play in the NFL has a dream of hoisting that Lombardi. It's what we all strive for, and it's the end goal for every team.
In the offseason, sometimes I'll go on Google and see if anything's up about me, if anything's being said about me.
Every single time we step on to the field - practice field or game field - we're thinking about winning that championship. But at the same time, we're taking it day by day. And we are taking it game by game.
I'm really pumped about this opportunity to be with Coach Gase... with his mind and ability to lead a team. He's a good dude.
Interviewing people is hard.
I like squats because they help build that foundation of strength. I do tons of single-leg moves for strength and balance because they let you test your strength in one leg at a time. But even on my leg days, I make sure to fit in some core work.
Whenever I come out to go to the NFL, I'd be honored to play for any team. Any team that would give me that opportunity to be part of their organization, it would mean the world to me.
For me, and I said this even before the draft, I think being with the same team for my whole career would be something that would be very special to me because, especially at the quarterback position, that means that we won a lot of games, hopefully Super Bowls, 'cause that's the end goal.
I think a lot of people that don't know me would say that I lead by example, which I feel like I do. But at the same time, I'm someone who's always been very up-front with people. I'm gonna get straight to the point.
I want to go to the 9/11 Memorial. I heard that's amazing and crazy to look at, an amazing museum. So I haven't done that. I'd like to do that.
If Cleveland takes me No. 1, it would be a great opportunity, first of all, and that goes for anyone taking me in any position.
Turning the ball over is something you don't want to do as a quarterback.
The goal every season is to win a Super Bowl.
In high school, getting recruited, usually guys have Twitters and Instagrams so that they can talk to coaches. I didn't have Twitter. All I had was Instagram. So someone created a fake Twitter account about me, and it was the most ridiculous stuff that you could ever think about.
To be the No. 1 pick, that would be so special.
Coach Gase has done amazing things, not with just quarterbacks but offenses in general.
I find joy in watching my teammates celebrate and do what they do. Whenever I throw them the ball, I love watching my teammates celebrate.
I love comedy, and I love listening to comedians talk.
Pizza and burgers are really different. It depends on my mood. Right now, I could go for both. I don't want to pick one. I don't think it would be fair to the burger or to the pizza.
I really want to prove to people that I'm capable of leading a franchise, but it doesn't necessarily have to be the No. 1 team to select me. — © Sam Darnold
I really want to prove to people that I'm capable of leading a franchise, but it doesn't necessarily have to be the No. 1 team to select me.
We haven't won a Super Bowl in, I think, 50 years, so the Jets fans who are out there are die-hard Jets fans. It's like generational fandom.
It's really important as a quarterback to have stability in all your joints but especially in the lower body, like the ankles, knees, and hips.
I'm a very competitive person, but at the same time, as a quarterback, you gotta be poised; you gotta be very poised and patient. I'm pretty loose and relaxed, but I'm also very competitive.
I just like hanging out with my friends, honestly. I mean, as long as I'm in good company and with cool people, and we're just hanging out and having a good time, that's usually what I like to do.
On my podcast, I got to interview Will Ferrell, Sam Hunt, Colin Cowherd - all these different names - and it was just really cool to be able to talk to those people about things that weren't everyday life for me, which is football.
For me, on social media, I try as hard as I can to be myself.
When I run, I really need to make sure I'm engaging my core and understanding where my power comes from.
I got a chance to meet and hang out with Sam Hunt. He's actually a pretty cool dude.
Eating right is key. Every athlete is going to train hard and lift hard and all that, so what you eat can be the difference when you want to separate yourself. As an athlete, it's really important to put healthy foods in your body.
I think the number one job as a quarterback is protecting the football.
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