Matt Calkins: Why Seahawks standout Byron Murphy II won even before Super Bowl LX

Matt Calkins, The Seattle Times on Feb 7, 2026

Published in Football

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SAN FRANCISCO — Byron Murphy II has already won in more ways than one.

I’m not even talking about the 23-year-old defensive tackle’s ascendant second season, which included 62 tackles and seven sacks. Or the former first-round pick’s penchant for dropping to a knee and stonewalling double teams, an unmovable 306-pound anchor derailing running games. Or, really, about Murphy’s Super Bowl debut on Sunday against the New England Patriots.

He’s won in the most meaningful way: His daughter is here.

Danee’ Azaria Murphy was born three months premature on Oct. 7, weighing just 2 pounds and 5 ounces at birth. After spending several months in a local hospital, she was finally discharged in December.

“It was one of the best feelings in the world. It was something I’ll never forget,” Murphy said of the day he brought his daughter home. “Seeing all the stuff she went through, all the tubes attached to her, it was hard going through that.

“But I’ve got a great family. I had a lot of support from my teammates. My guys had me. For her to come home, it means a lot. She’s doing great. Ever since she came home, she hasn’t looked back.”

So much so that Danee’ Azaria arrived in San Francisco on Friday, along with Murphy’s overflowing family — his fiancée, Maya Hurd; his parents, Byron Murphy Sr. and Seneca Murphy; his grandmother, three brothers and multiple uncles.

But of his daughter, a beaming Murphy said: “She’s doing great. She’s nine pounds, so she’s getting big. She’s getting big, bruh!”

Not quite as big as Murphy — the Seahawks’ 6-foot, 306-pound pass rusher and run stuffer. When asked about his teammate’s seismic strides, fellow lineman Leonard Williams said: “His humility and his maturity has helped him grow into a better player from year one to year two. I think he was really not satisfied with his rookie season. He was really humble to want to learn, want to grow. He’s really phenomenal in the run game. Really an immovable object, honestly, at times. I don’t care how many guys you put on him. He drops to that knee and defeats double teams. That’s what makes him so special.”

Murphy has always been phenomenal in the run game. At DeSoto (Texas) High School, he plowed opponents as a 250-pound freshman running back.

Another way Murphy has won?

He’s here, too.

He wouldn’t be without his mother, the unflinching reason he switched sides of the ball.

“I thought I was going to be like a Jerome Bettis, Adrian Peterson. But things changed,” Murphy said. “After my freshman year, my mom told me, 'No more running back. You’re playing defense.’ That was it. I’m thankful for her, because I would have probably kept trying to play offense. I wouldn’t even be here if not for her.”

He added: “I was sick. I wanted to start crying when she told me [I was done at running back]. That’s where my heart was at. But I thank God she told me to switch to defense. Because now I’m here.”

He’s here, breaking double teams on the NFL’s most dominant defense. That defense — which surrendered just 3.7 yards per carry this season, fewest in the NFL — will be tasked with stymying Patriots running backs TreVeyon Henderson and Rhamondre Stevenson on Sunday. Quarterback Drake Maye also accounted for 450 rushing yards and four scores, a significant dual threat.

Seahawks coach Mike Macdonald will depend on his defensive line, Murphy included, to stuff the run and allow Seattle to keep its safeties out of the box.

To be what they’ve been for five consecutive months.

“Murph’s an unbelievable player,” said Seahawks left guard Grey Zabel, when asked about the challenge of blocking Murphy in practice. “He’s got that three-level ability. He’s got strength, speed and quickness. So he can move side to side extremely well. He can dip, and he’s got the strength to bull rush. So when you’re blocking a guy like that, it’s really impressive.”

For Murphy, Super Bowl LX is the culmination of an incomparably chaotic stretch. In the last four months, he became a father, found on-field success and reached his first Super Bowl.

Danee’ Azaria Murphy turns four months old on Saturday.

On Saturday, family is his focus. On Sunday, it’s football.

“I’m reminding myself to block out the noise. Nothing matters but the guys in this room,” Murphy said Wednesday. “That’s what I keep telling myself: ‘Especially in this moment, know why you’re here. You’re here for a reason. You’re here to win the Super Bowl.’”

Which — who knows? — could require a blast from his past. Though Seahawks tight end AJ Barner has seemingly perfected the tush push, Murphy rushed for a touchdown during his college career at Texas as well.

If the Seahawks have the ball at the 1-yard line against the Patriots on Sunday, might Murphy show his mother he can still win in multiple ways?

“I got to talk to [Seahawks offensive coordinator Klint Kubiak]. I love that, though,” Murphy said with a smile. “If I get the ball at the 1, I know I’m going to punch it in. I can still do it. I haven’t lost nothin’.”

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