The Seattle Seahawks are the reigning Super Bowl champions, and they plan to run it back with Sam Darnold at quarterback and Mike Macdonald entering year three as head coach. But a former NFC West rival isn’t picking Seattle to repeat.
Danny Amendola, who spent three seasons catching passes for the St. Louis Rams before his career took him to New England and beyond, weighed in on the 2026 Super Bowl race during an interview with The Action Network. He didn’t hold back on his admiration for Seattle’s title run. He just doesn’t think it continues.
“Yeah, the Seahawks are great. They played, earned it last year. They, deserve every bit of that championship,” Amendola said.
Seattle beat the New England Patriots 29-13 in Super Bowl 60 back in February, riding Mike Macdonald’s top-ranked “Dark Side” defense and a bounce-back season from Darnold to the franchise’s second Lombardi Trophy. That’s not in dispute. What Amendola questions is whether the Seahawks can do it again with the Los Angeles Rams reloading in the same division.
Why Amendola Likes the Rams Better
Amendola laid out his case plainly, pointing to the star power L.A. already has and the possibility of even more on the way.
“I think coming in, you got offensive and defensive MVPs on both sides of the ball,” Amendola said, referring to quarterback Matthew Stafford and edge rusher Myles Garrett, “and then another beast coming back in there in Aaron Donald at defensive tackle.”
That last part is still speculation. Donald retired in 2024 and has not announced a return. Head coach Sean McVay said last week that a decision likely won’t come until the team wraps training camp and heads back to its facility in Woodland Hills, and NBC Sports reported Donald recently ran through a formal tryout in pads to gauge how his body responded. Nothing is official yet, and Amendola’s own comment acknowledged as much.
Garrett arrived in Los Angeles via trade this offseason, teaming with a defense that’s looking to climb after ranking 17th overall a year ago. The Rams also swung a trade for Kansas City Chiefs cornerback Trent McDuffie, a move Amendola singled out as another reason for his confidence in L.A.
“Like I said, they got a good cornerback in the mix now, and they’re just continuing to get better. Time will tell,” Amendola said. “That’s why we play the game, and we got a long way to go. By no means do we crown them the champions yet, but they’ve definitely got a good football team.”
Seattle’s Case for Running It Back
The Seahawks aren’t exactly standing still while the Rams get the offseason buzz. Darnold is back after leading Seattle to its first Super Bowl since the 2014 season, and Macdonald’s defense — anchored by Devon Witherspoon, Derick Hall and Byron Murphy — returns largely intact. According to ClutchPoints, Seattle brings back a significant chunk of its title-winning roster heading into 2026, even as some outside evaluators remain skeptical the Seahawks can go back-to-back.
That’s the tension setting up what could be another two-team race in the NFC West. Seattle has the ring. Los Angeles, at least in the eyes of oddsmakers and now Amendola, has the roster many think is better equipped to get one this time.
What Happens Next
Nothing about the NFC West race gets settled in August. The Rams still have to figure out the Donald question, and the Seahawks still have to prove last year’s defense wasn’t a one-season peak. Amendola’s comments read less like a prediction locked in stone and more like a gut check from someone who watched both franchises up close.
Seattle opens its title defense with plenty to answer, and comments like Amendola’s are the kind of thing a team with a chip on its shoulder tends to remember.
