'Into The Dark!' Seahawks' AJ Barner Reveals Double-Surgery News

Seattle Seahawks tight end AJ Barner uses the phrase "into the dark'' to describe one aspect of his offseason.

But it's not quite as "dark'' as one might think.

Barner recently shared a newsworthy update on his injury status during Seattle’s OTAs: He followed up the team's Super Bowl win by undergoing a pair of surgeries.

“You go from winning the Super Bowl, doing the parade, to getting two surgeries the next week,” Barner revealed via a YouTube video. “People don’t really get to see that. It was awesome to reach that pinnacle, but now I gotta go back to the woods, go into the dark and go get right, so that’s kind of the mindset that I’ve had.”

So "into the dark'' is actually a good thing for Barner, who was selected in the fourth round of the 2024 NFL Draft and then earned the starting tight end job in 2025.

By the time the Super Bowl was sealed - a game in which Barner caught four balls for 54 yards and TD - the young tight end had capped a year during which he started all 17 games for Seattle during the regular season and racked up 52 receptions for 519 yards and six touchdowns. 

Barner's revelation that he had to undergo a pair of surgeries a week after winning the Super Bowl did not include specifics.

"I'm feeling good," Barner said. "Obviously, as coach Mike (Macdonald) said, I had the things."

"The things,'' meaning a whole bunch of bumps and bruises and more.

So ... all of that ends up meaning that much of his offseason has been spent on injury rehab.

Barner does figure to be good to go for the start of the Seahawks’ 2026 season.

"I'm somebody that, no matter how I'm feeling, I'm going to play, just like a lot of other guys in our locker room,'' said Barner, who is gaining a short of iron-man reputation in the NFL. "So I'm definitely feeling better, it's definitely still a process to get back out there, but by the time training camp rolls around, I'm going to be ready to go.''