Reinvention Must Be Constant, The Seahawks’ Instant Classic Proves It
As the first quarter of the 21st century concludes and we venture toward the new year, one word you may hear regularly is reinvention. After all, the only constant in life is change. But how does one go about changing well—indeed, how do we reinvent ourselves?
It’s a difficult question to answer, but for a few hints, we can turn to this week’s football game between the Seattle Seahawks and Los Angeles Rams. The instant classic, which saw Seattle win 38-37 in OT, proved reinvention is happening right before our eyes.
Just think of the game’s two starting quarterbacks.
Has anyone reinvented himself over the past two seasons more than Sam Darnold? The former top pick of the New York Jets quickly became the butt of jokes after flaming out in the Big Apple. Last season, after turning himself into a Pro Bowler in Minnesota, Darnold again damaged his rep with a poor playoff performance—against the Rams of all teams.
Fast-forward nearly a year later and the chip he’s worn on his shoulder would make Lay’s envious. It led to a performance on Thursday that may just have earned him an MVP Award—an unthinkable statement when he was throwing interceptions en masse in New York not long ago.
“We’re a very resilient, relentless group,” Darnold said after the win on Thursday.
No kidding! The last time the Seahawks won the NFC West was 2014. The team is now 12-3 and in line for a possible top seed in the NFC.
Darnold’s counterpart on Thursday, Matthew Stafford, is another remarkable case of reinvention. The once “good stats on a bad team guy” in Detroit has turned himself into a star in Los Angeles—a Super Bowl-winning QB and also a 2025 MVP candidate. Once a perennial loser, Stafford may be the best at his position today.
Reinvention is possible.
It can happen in a season and even in a single game. Earlier this year, the Rams eeked out a victory against Seattle after the Hawks led most of the contest. On Thursday, the script flipped. The Rams led most of the game and Seattle came back, winning on a gutsy two-point conversion in overtime.
For much of the game, it was L.A. going for it on 4th down, playing gutsy. But it was Seattle and Coach Mike Macdonald who displayed the biggest leap of faith in the extra frame, going for two after scoring a TD to win it all.
“It was something we talked about throughout the season and particularly for this game because of the playoff situation,” the coach said Thursday. “You know, you play for the tie and lock up a playoff seat, but I just felt great about our play and I trusted our guys.”
With the win, Seattle now controls its playoff path. They sit atop the NFC and, to some, that’s an unthinkable position after letting Pro Bowl QB Geno Smith go in the summer and bringing in Darnold. For both the team and its remade QB, what success has comes down to, of course, is hard work. Not giving up. Believing in yourself. Yes, all of that.
But there’s more to it.
It’s about consistency.
Reinvention does not happen overnight, nor do positive results happen by accident.
Rams coach Sean McVay has mastered the art of reinvention, too. Those watching Thursday night heard about it within the first few plays. The game’s announcers almost immediately talked about McVay’s signature and unusual “13 personnel” (one running back and three tight ends) and how it deviates from the traditional “11 personnel” he used earlier in his career.
It’s just one more example of a Super Bowl champion’s willingness—need, even—to evolve.
“This league is too competitive,” McVay has said. “Everyone is studying the teams at the top of the league, and if you think you’re going to do the same shit you did in previous years and have the same success, you’re kidding yourself.”
So as you look to the start of 2026, take a page from McVay’s book. Look for new and creative ways to achieve success. Try, iterate, try again. Renvent!