SAN JOSE, Calif. (AP) — When Jay Harbaugh was hired as special teams coordinator for the Seattle Seahawks in February 2024, long snapper Chris Stoll initially didn’t like him because of his college ties.

Jay, the son of Los Angeles Chargers head coach Jim Harbaugh, coached for nine seasons at Michigan while Stoll spent six years at Penn State. It didn’t take long for Stoll to come around on the younger Harbaugh, though.

“He is able to generate buy-in from guys, and that’s also just the culture we have here in Seattle,” Stoll said. “We know that we can make a difference and an impact on special teams.”

The Seahawks specials teams certainly have under Harbaugh’s direction in their leadup to Super Bowl 60.

Including these playoffs, Seattle has scored five special teams touchdowns, four of them on returns. Rashid Shaheed, whom the Seahawks acquired from the New Orleans Saints in November, returned the opening kickoff for a touchdown in the divisional round against the San Francisco 49ers, which was one of three special teams touchdowns for the speedy wide receiver.

Ahead of the Seahawks’ 31-27 win against the Los Angeles Rams in the NFC championship game, Harbaugh said that in an era where 20-yard punt returns happen infrequently, rattling off as many special teams touchdowns as Seattle has is no small accomplishment.

“The investment that they have, that they put in day in and day out, unselfishness and commitment to doing it right and respecting the opponent in the process, they deserve to have success,” Harbaugh said.

It isn’t just the return game where Seattle has excelled.

In his 11th season, Jason Myers set the NFL record for most points by a kicker in a single season with 171, surpassing David Akers’ 166. And punter Michael Dickson was a second-team AP All-Pro selection in his eighth year in the league after averaging 42.2 yards per punt, and landing 20 of his 52 punts inside the 20-yard line.

“They’re studs,” said special teams ace and fullback Brady Russell. “They’re clearly two of the best in the world and their performance kind of reflects their work ethic.”

Seattle was also tied in allowing the second-fewest punt returns (19) and fourth-fewest touchbacks (3) as a team in 2025. And unsung players like Dareke Young have risen to the occasion in big moments, too, like when he recovered a muffed punt in the NFC championship game to set up a touchdown.

“There’s been a ton of games where we really flipped the game, got the momentum back,” Myers said. “Or, it was a close game, and we really started the onslaught of points.”

Stoll said it’s no coincidence the Seahawks have enjoyed success on special teams.

Specials teams is the first meeting and practice period of the day. The expectation each year is for the Seahawks to generate special teams scores, even though they don’t come in bunches every season.

Coach Mike Macdonald is thankful Harbaugh joined his staff in 2024.

Macdonald was Michigan’s defensive coordinator in 2021 while Harbaugh oversaw the Wolverines’ special teams. Their relationship dates back much further, though, to when Harbaugh was a quality control coach for the Baltimore Ravens and interviewed Macdonald for a job in 2014. They’ve been friends ever since.

“It was a very, very easy decision to beg him to come to Seattle and be our special teams coordinator,” Macdonald said. “And he’s done a tremendous job since Day 1. You talk about chasing edges, this guy, that’s how he operates all the time. Pushing the envelope, he pushes me. He’s got a great perspective.”

___

AP NFL: https://apnews.com/hub/nfl

SAN JOSE, Calif. (AP) — While Cooper Kupp donned a T-shirt Thursday in vehement support of quarterback Sam Darnold, the veteran wide receiver simultaneously received heaps of praise from his teammates.

Four years removed from the most productive season of his career, Kupp will become the sixth player in NFL history to win a Super Bowl MVP, and then play in the Super Bowl with another team when he and the Seahawks square off with the New England Patriots on Sunday.

Unlike was the case in his prosperous 2021 season, Kupp didn’t win the AP Offensive Player of the Year award, nor the receiving triple crown in 2025.

But, Kupp endeared himself to teammates like Dareke Young during the veteran wideout’s first season with the Seahawks after eight exemplary ones with the Los Angeles Rams. Young has been most impressed with Kupp’s unselfishness while Jaxon Smith-Njigba led the NFL in receiving yards.

“He won a Triple Crown, and then he comes and he’s wide receiver No. 2,” Young said. “Some receivers might not like that. But, you can’t tell if it upsets him or not. … that’s just a guy that you aspire to be like, that’s just team first.”

It isn’t just the way Kupp, 32, has embraced a secondary role that has stood out most to Young and others. Rather, it’s how Kupp has led by example in myriad ways, which in the build-up to Super Bowl unsurprisingly deals with his preparation.

“You got to go through your process,” Kupp said. “And right now, it’s about handling our business.”

And whenever Kupp does speak up with his teammates, it’s often worthwhile — like when he took the time to explain a play during Thursday morning’s round of interviews.

“If he does say things, he’s one of those guys where the entire room is dead silent, and they’re super focused on what he’s saying because we know that he doesn’t waste his breath,” Darnold said. “He’s always going to be able to say something very mindful, and for us, speaking for the players, but also the coaches, he’s had a huge impact on all of us in that building.”

What Kupp has been best known for in his first year in the Emerald City is his run-blocking. On a team that finished the season with the 10th-most rushing yards per game, Kupp set the standard for what was expected of receivers on the perimeter despite his 6-foot-1, 205-pound frame.

“Coop isn’t a guy that lifts the whole weight room,” Young said. “So, his technique is just always perfect, or has to be perfect when dealing with bigger guys so he doesn’t get thrown around.”

Smith-Njigba praised Kupp, who has 681 catches for 8,369 yards receiving and 59 touchdowns in his NFL career, for being so willing to put his body on the line. It’s especially commendable from his teammates’ perspectives considering injuries plagued Kupp over his last three years in Los Angeles, which contributed to his release by the Rams last season.

This year in Seattle, Kupp’s practice repetitions were limited to help him get through a full season, which he nearly did while playing 16 out of 17 games and amassing the second-most yards receiving on the team with 593.

Kupp hasn’t just been an inspiration for younger teammates like Rashid Shaheed, who used to watch highlights of him while he was a four-time FCS All-America wide receiver at Eastern Washington. Kupp has also provided the blueprint for how to replicate, or at least achieve similar success.

“Being his teammate, I see how he’s had so much success throughout his whole career,” Shaheed said. “Man, he’s so smart. I try to take bits and pieces from not only practice film, but from what he says in the meeting room. It’s like having another coach on the field. He’s an amazing guy.”

And Kupp isn’t interested in hanging up his cleats any time soon. He brushed aside any questions about him contemplating retirement, and offensive lineman Grey Zabel fully expects Kupp to continue playing for “many years” thanks to his football IQ.

It would be quite the swan song if Kupp were to go out on top with his second Super Bowl championship and forgo the 2026 season. He might not be the star of the show for this Super Bowl the way he was in 2022, but Kupp has been around the block enough to know how to advise the Seahawks’ prodigal wide receiver on how to handle himself ahead of the big game.

“He just tells me to be myself and just control the storm, the Super Bowl storm and make sure you’re ready,” Smith-Njigba said. “He’s always preached process over results, so just sticking to the process and making sure I nail it down and I get up Sunday ready to go.”

___

AP NFL: https://apnews.com/hub/nfl

Washington quarterback Demond Williams Jr. said Wednesday his short-lived decision to leave the Huskies was a mistake that resulted from “really bad advice.”

The 19-year-old Williams announced last month he was entering the transfer portal, then changed his mind two days later and said he would be back with the Huskies.

According to multiple reports, Washington was prepared to pursue legal options to enforce Williams’ lucrative name, image and likeness contract. Williams’ NIL deal exceeded $4 million, according to ESPN, and his potential departure raised questions about the validity of such contracts.

When asked to explain what happened alongside four teammates and coach Jedd Fisch, Williams said he both understood and appreciated the question from a reporter in Seattle.

“Definitely being 19, you get good advice and you get really bad advice at times,” Williams said. “We’re all human. We all make mistakes. And at the end of the day, I’m super blessed to be here with my brothers and my coaches and just at the University of Washington. I’m just so happy to be here and so blessed.”

Williams was also asked what considerations went into his decision to enter the portal in the first place, only to pull his name out. The rising junior said he was grateful that his teammates and coaches have accepted him back.

Williams also did not comment when asked if it was LSU that sought to acquire him through the portal.

Last month, Fisch described Williams’ situation as being in “limbo for 48 hours” rather than weeks or months. Williams announced via social media on Jan. 6 he would leave the Huskies after his sophomore season, saying, “I have to do what is best for me and my future.”

The announcement was met with chagrin from Washington fans. It came on the same day the school held a celebration of life for Mia Hamant, a goalkeeper for the women’s soccer team who died of kidney cancer. In January, Fisch acknowledged Williams may need to repair broken relationships.

Williams completed 69.5% of his passes for 3,065 yards with 25 touchdowns last season. He hopes to be a more vocal leader in 2026 and play with more consistency. In the Huskies’ four losses, Williams completed 62.9% of his passes for 645 yards with three touchdowns and six interceptions.

“Just trying to find ways to continue to play at a high level throughout the entire season,” Williams said. “Definitely going through a lot of learning curves. Having some rough games and being able to come back the next week and respond and figure out how to adjust on the fly, week by week, and continue to just grind and learn how to prepare.”

___

Get poll alerts and updates on the AP Top 25 throughout the season. Sign up here and here (AP News mobile app). AP college football: https://apnews.com/hub/ap-top-25-college-football-poll and https://apnews.com/hub/college-football

SAN JOSE, Calif. (AP) — Quarterback Sam Darnold has played through an oblique injury during each of the Seattle Seahawks’ two playoff wins and he doesn’t expect it to affect him in the Super Bowl on Sunday, either.

Ahead of Wednesday’s practice, Darnold said he still feels “really good,” just as he did before the Seahawks beat the Los Angeles Rams 31-27 in the NFC championship game.

“Definitely the time off has helped a little bit,” Darnold said. "I’m always just going to take it one step at a time, do my rehab and do everything I need to do to make sure it feels great going into practice and going into the game, obviously on Sunday. It feels great.”

After his second straight Pro Bowl season, Darnold has excelled in the playoffs. In two playoff games, Darnold has completed 37 of 53 passes for 470 yards and thrown four touchdown passes with no interceptions.

Coach Mike Macdonald said Darnold has gradually increased how many passes he has thrown in practice after being restricted earlier in the Seahawks’ playoff run. Darnold was limited in practices last week in Seattle before the team flew to San Jose in advance of the game against the New England Patriots.

“He’s in a great spot,” Macdonald said. “I know he’s really confident. We’ll see how today plays out. I’m not entirely sure how many throws or what percentage of throws.”

___

AP NFL: https://apnews.com/hub/nfl

SEATTLE (AP) — The day after longtime Mariners broadcaster Rick Rizzs announced he will retire at the end of the 2026 season following his 41st year in the Seattle booth, he pleaded for the team to win the World Series this fall.

And at the Mariners’ fan fest Saturday at T-Mobile Park, countless key players from last year’s team, which came within one win of the franchise’s first World Series appearance, echoed the same sentiment. Perhaps nobody’s tune was louder than that of star center fielder Julio Rodríguez, who spoke on behalf of the club.

“I think this year is going to do wonders for us,” Rodríguez said. “I think we’re all in a better place.”

Seattle brought back many important contributors from last year’s team, which went 90-72 and won the franchise's first AL West title since 2001. It won’t just be catcher Cal Raleigh, who became the seventh player in major league history to hit 60 homers in a season, returning to the Emerald City.

There’s also first baseman Josh Naylor, who agreed to a five-year, $92.5 million contract with the Mariners in November. Naylor endeared himself to Seattle’s fan base with his aggressive style while hitting .299 with nine home runs and 19 stolen bases in 54 games after being acquired at the trade deadline.

“I can’t wait to spend a full season here, make some great memories,” Naylor said. “My goal is to win a World Series every year, and (I) really want to try to do that for this city and this organization and everyone involved.”

Still, the sting of a disappointing finish to a banner season continues to haunt various Mariners, just as it did in October in the days shortly after they were eliminated by the Toronto Blue Jays in Game 7 of the American League Championship Series. At the very least, though, it set a precedent for what the Mariners expect of themselves in 2026 and beyond.

Seattle starter George Kirby, who was third on the team in wins (10) last year, thinks getting to the ALCS should be the standard for this group moving forward.

“Getting to where we did, I feel like that’s the floor for us this year,” Kirby said. “Anything else kind of doesn’t cut it.”

Mariners manager Dan Wilson, entering his second full season at the helm, expressed a similar level of confidence in his team, which returns five players who were worth at least 3.8 Wins Above Replacement last season, according to baseball-reference.com. Perhaps unsurprisingly, president of baseball operations Jerry Dipoto and general manager Justin Hollander didn’t add many players to Seattle’s roster.

While veteran infielder Jorge Polanco — who had 26 home runs last season — left via free agency for the New York Mets, the Mariners did add outfielder Rob Refsnyder, who hit .269 with nine home runs and an .838 OPS in 70 games last year. Slugging third baseman Eugenio Suárez, obtained in a July trade, remains a free agent, so Seattle could turn to 25-year-old Ben Williamson, who was a rookie last year, to man the hot corner.

Otherwise, the Mariners will be putting their faith in a core led by Rodríguez, Raleigh, Naylor and right-handed starting pitchers like Kirby, All-Star Bryan Woo, Logan Gilbert, Luis Castillo and Bryce Miller.

“I love this group,” Wilson said. “To have that core continue to be together, you can add pieces to that as we have. And I think Jerry and Justin do an outstanding job of that. And the pieces, because there’s a core, the pieces fit in pretty quickly. I don’t anticipate that being any different.”

It remains to be seen how Refsnyder and prospects like Williamson, fellow young infielder Cole Young and others will slot into Seattle’s plans. The 2025 season remains one worth celebrating, but as Raleigh put it, the Mariners must build off what they already accomplished, or risk last year turning into a one-hit wonder.

“What we’re trying to accomplish here is winning a World Series and setting the standard, the bar, the expectations super high,” Raleigh said, “because that’s where we want to be. I think that’s kind of the way we’re looking at it.”

___

AP MLB: https://apnews.com/hub/mlb