‘Before Josh Allen…’ Robert Griffin III praised Sam Darnold, then his QB list turned into a ‘hold up’ moment online

Sam Darnold is going to Super Bowl LX. And Robert Griffin III made sure the internet heard about it.The ex-Washington Commanders quarterback praised Darnold on X while throwing a loud little jab at a stack of star QBs. Hours later, Griffin also got dragged for a separate Super Bowl take that flat-out missed one obvious name.Griffin posted a clean, sharp headline-style line about Darnold’s timing on the biggest stage: “Sam Darnold made it to a Super Bowl before Josh Allen, Lamar Jackson, Justin Herbert, Dak Prescott, Baker Mayfield and Trevor Lawrence.” He wasn’t wrong about Darnold reaching the Super Bowl before those quarterbacks, and the shade was the point.Griffin’s post also landed because it pokes at reputations. Allen is the reigning league MVP. Jackson is a two-time MVP. Herbert’s been treated like top-tier. Prescott has been an MVP finalist. Mayfield and Lawrence went No. 1 overall. Griffin, meanwhile, made one Pro Bowl in his NFL career and watched injuries derail what looked like a real runway in Washington. He now works as a broadcaster and analyst.But Griffin’s “made it before them” theme hit a wall when he used the same framing for New England Patriots quarterback Drake Maye after the AFC title game. Griffin wrote: “Drake Maye made it to a Super Bowl before Josh Allen, Lamar Jackson, Justin Herbert, Jared Goff, Dak Prescott, Baker Mayfield and Trevor Lawrence.” Social media immediately pointed out the problem: Goff has already started a Super Bowl.Goff was the Los Angeles Rams’ quarterback in Super Bowl LIII against the Patriots. New England beat Sean McVay’s team at Mercedes-Benz Stadium in Atlanta. People forget the losing QB fast, but that doesn’t make the claim true.The bigger story is Darnold getting here at all. According to an NBC News report by Andrew Greif, Seattle is his fifth NFL team. His first team traded him after three years. His second moved on after 17 starts. His third signed him as a backup. His fourth won big with him starting, then chose a rookie after two late losses.Now, he’s the reason the Seahawks are the NFC champs.In Seattle’s 31-27 NFC championship win over the Rams, Darnold threw for 346 yards and three touchdowns with no turnovers. Seahawks coach Mike Macdonald made the point bluntly: “You can’t talk about the game without talking about our quarterback. He just shut a lot of people up tonight, so I’m really happy for him.” Fox broadcaster Tom Brady even clocked Seattle’s late-game nerve with two words: “Courageous call.”Darnold’s quotes also match the moment. He said: “I feel that support. Not with only their words but with how everyone treats each other in the building. There's a lot of respect that goes around the building. Everyone respects the work that we all put into this great game and so I'm just happy to be part of this team, man.” And when the old clip came back up, he didn’t duck it. Asked about the Patriots moment where cameras caught him saying he was “seeing ghosts,” Darnold responded: “I almost forgot about it. For me, there was a lot that I didn't know back then, so I'm just going to continue to learn and grow in this great game. There's a lot of stuff that I can be better from today, even.”Super Bowl LX is set: Seahawks vs. the Drake Maye-led Patriots at Levi’s Stadium in Santa Clara, Calif. The game is Sunday, Feb. 8, 2026, at 6:30 p.m. ET on NBC, with streaming listed as FuboTV and DAZN.Maye is getting there too, even if it wasn’t pretty in the AFC title game. He threw for 86 yards with no touchdown on 10-of-21 passing and took five sacks in the snowy win over the Denver Broncos at Empower Field at Mile High in Denver, Colo. He gets a clean stage next. Darnold gets the loudest rewrite of his career.