Super Bowl LX was the kind of bruising, (initially) low-scoring fight that delights defensive coordinators. The NFC’s Seattle Seahawks finished the job behind a defense that has defined its season, overcoming stalled drives, heavy quarterback pressure and a frenzied fourth quarter to secure a 29-13 win over the AFC’s New England Patriots.
For much of the night, the offense struggled. The first touchdown did not arrive until tight end AJ Barner caught a 16-yd pass from QB Sam Darnold with 13:24 remaining in the fourth quarter. This play shifted the tone of the game. New England pushed the ball with more aggression and Seattle responded with heavier pressure. The fourth quarter turned chaotic, with more throwaways and critical special teams contributions. Seattle punter Michael Dickson held New England to just four return yards, averaging 47.9 yards per kick on seven punts.
This rare scoring delay was a testament to how both defenses controlled the line of scrimmage. Early possessions dissolved into punts and field goal attempts as Darnold and Patriots QB Drake Maye faced tight coverage.
Seahawks Defensive Coordinator Aden Durde, who brought his talents to Seattle after a three-year stint with the Dallas Cowboys, prioritized eliminating the outside zone run and forcing everything into traffic. That approach worked. New England rarely found space on the edge, which created many tricky third-and-long situations and frequent turnovers.
Seattle proved it did not need an explosive offense to win the game because its front seven on defense consistently disrupted timing and forced hurried throws from Maye. The Patriots initially entered their protection schemes with confidence, but pressure from Seattle’s rushers won out on the outside, and pressure from interior defenders pushed the pocket back.
Maye struggled to settle into a rhythm, enduring one of the roughest Super Bowl outings since the Jared Goff debacle of 2019. The young QB has garnered somewhat of a cult following throughout this year’s breakout season, so some of his diehard fans were quick to blame New England’s offensive line for the poor performance.
Yes, the protection broke down at key moments, and the left side of the offensive line has been a liability throughout the postseason. Will Campbell has been a bottom-five tackle, and left guard Jared Wilson has been underwhelming. However, Maye held the ball too long on several snaps and missed open receivers on plays where protection held long enough. His fourth quarter intercepted pass to Mack Hollins came, disastrously, on the heels of one of New England’s few positive offensive plays of the game. The ugly throw into triple-coverage made many wonder how the only thing standing between Maye and the 2025 MVP award was a few more votes for Matthew Stafford.
One of the game’s deciding factors was Darnold’s agility in the collapsing pocket, compared to Maye’s hesitancy and high number of sacks — he endured a whopping six — which set the NFL record for most sacks taken by a QB in a single postseason (21 total), surpassing Cincinnati Bengals’ Joe Burrow’s from 2021. Darnold did not deliver a particularly impressive passing line either, but his scrambling changed the game. Several broken-pocket runs extended drives and flipped field position, preventing empty possessions and helping Seattle control the tempo throughout this defensive slugfest.
Veteran broadcaster Chris Collinsworth’s halftime wisdom suggested the moment may have been too heavy for a young quarterback like Maye, who was under constant heat, as he appeared reluctant to run even when lanes opened. When he did move, it often came late in the play after options closed. This offense-wide breakdown resulting from elite defense fueled much contention about New England’s competition leading up to the playoffs, and it certainly did no favors for Maye’s “schedule merchant” allegations.
The first half’s stat line belonged to Seahawks running back Kenneth Walker III, who posted 94 rushing yards on 14 carries before the break, the second-highest first-half rushing total in Super Bowl history. Walker helped propel Seattle to a 9-0 halftime lead and kept Seattle’s offense functional when the passing game was severely lacking, a performance that secured him Super Bowl MVP.
Seattle’s placekicker Jason Myers also had a historic night, converting on five field goals, a Super Bowl record. Each kick reinforced the same pattern: Seattle moved the ball downfield, stalling in the red zone but getting far enough for Myers to finish the drive.
The receiving game on both sides never found steady footing. Targets piled up for top options but efficiency seemingly lagged. Seahawks Wide Receiver Jaxon Smith-Njigba (JSN) saw repeated looks and limited returns for much of the night, with eight targets but just two receptions by the third quarter. A fourth-quarter throw from Darnold, scrambling to duck a New England tackle, was just a few yards too long for what would’ve been an 86-yard walk-in touchdown for JSN. He finished the night with four receptions.
Postgame analysis debated over how much blame belonged to scheme, protection and quarterback decision making, but one common thread held — that Seattle’s “Dark Horse” defense drove the outcome. That defensive identity was evident throughout an entire season of strong, disciplined coverage by Seattle. The Super Bowl followed the same blueprint of forced mistakes and advantageous field position to get points on the board.
Beyond the field, another storyline now moves to the foreground. Seahawks owner Jody Allen plans to sell the franchise in accordance with the estate directive established after her brother Paul Allen’s death in 2018. The trust structure that had held the team was always viewed as temporary because the league preferred a single controlling owner. While not officially on the market, the sale could fetch around $9 billion, surpassing the $6.05 billion record set by Washington, establishing a new benchmark for franchise valuation. If finalized this year, the transaction would mark the first sale involving a reigning Super Bowl champion.
Team officials previously downplayed sale rumors during the playoff run, always bringing the focus back to the season, but with the title secured, attention can now shift toward ownership transition and what it could mean for long-term operations, leadership structure and the NFL draft.
