Déjà Vu: Seahawks Won’t Repeat Unless Sam Darnold Kicks Turnover Bug, Again

Lumen Field (Seattle) — We’ve seen this movie before. Sam Darnold threw the ball to the other team again and again on Sunday. The Seattle Seahawks’ quarterback had a two-interception showing in their home loss to the San Francisco 49ers on Sunday, falling 32-29. After another multi-interception game, Darnold was quick to point the finger at himself, as he should. “I’ve just got to continue to trust myself, trust myself, trust my feet and trust what I’m doing,” Darnold said at the podium. “I’ve just got to be better taking care of the football.” Only three quarterbacks have more interceptions than Darnold’s five this season, and he’s played in essentially two fewer games. Remember, Darnold missed practically the entire first two games of the season due to a glute injury. He’s now thrown an interception in all three games he’s started and finished, with Sunday being his second multi-interception game of the year after leading the league in turnovers last season with 20. Still, Seattle Seahawks left guard Grey Zabel told me it’s up to the rest of Seattle’s teammates to pick up their quarterback when he’s struggling. “It starts up front, being better,” Zabel told me. “Me, in particular, giving the quarterback time and making him feel comfortable up there. Allowing him to make throws. … I don’t think Sam’s the problem. The problem was the left guard not being good enough, and that’s on me.” While it’s admirable that Zabel took accountability for Darnold and his offense’s poor performance, Seattle’s issues go deeper than an occasional missed block by the second-year offensive lineman. Since moving on from Kenneth Walker III in free agency, the Seahawks haven’t effectively run the football. They entered Sunday 14th in the league in rushing, with first-round pick Jadarian Price dealing with fumble issues before getting placed on injured reserve recently. They rushed for 89 yards on 3.4 yards per carry on Sunday, continuing their struggles. And Seattle’s inability to run the ball came against a San Francisco front that hasn’t played all too well this season. The 49ers’ pass rush is considered among the league’s least dangerous, and they were missing Pro Bowl edge rusher Nick Bosa. Yet, Seattle allowed five sacks and a 45.7% pressure rate, per Next Gen Stats. That led to Darnold’s pedestrian final stat line. He completed 18 of 29 passes for 195 yards and a touchdown with a 64.6 passer rating. Of course, there were also the two interceptions, which were both made by 49ers cornerback Renardo Green. Darnold wasn’t the only one who played sloppy on Sunday, though. In what could be characterized as the game of the season so far, neither team played clean football. The seven combined turnovers by both teams are the most in a game this season, according to FOX Sports Research. The 38 combined points off turnovers were the most in a game this season and most in a game since 2017. The heavyweight, see-saw battle saw four lead changes. One player was ejected: San Francisco linebacker Dre Greenlaw, when he headbutted Seattle’s green-dot play caller, fellow linebacker Ernest Jones, who did not have his helmet on. Greenlaw found himself surrounded by Seahawks after hitting Darnold along Seattle’s sideline while he was out of bounds. But the 49ers figured out a way to tame Seattle’s offense without the tone-setter in the middle of their defense. The game included a rare drop on the potential game-winning drive by Jaxon Smith-Njigba that would have put Seattle into field goal position with 54 seconds left. A play later, the game ended with (no surprise) a controversial call when Cooper Kupp was called short of a first down by a yard while diving for the line to gain. Defensively, the Seahawks pressured Brock Purdy in his worst game this season. Purdy finished 19 of 29 for 189 yards, with two touchdown passes. He was sacked for the first time this year and also threw an interception corralled by Seattle defensive back Nehemiah Prichett. However, Seattle struggled to slow down perennial Pro Bowler Mike Evans, who finished with game highs in catches (7) and receiving yards (113), along with executing a viral moment where he named-checked Seattle veteran cornerback Trevon Diggs. Evans’ teammate Fred Warner described the veteran receiver as “walking aura,” which felt very appropriate considering how he played against the Seahawks on Sunday. But even with the struggles around Darnold, the quarterback’s play will ultimately determine whether Seattle repeats as champions in 2026. And the Seahawks have proof that Darnold playing clean football leads to winning games. The USC product did not turn the ball over in the postseason, leading his team to a Super Bowl title. So why does Darnold have five interceptions in just three games and a handful of plays in the season opener? Head coach Mike Macdonald said his team must get back to playing effective and efficient football. “It’s everybody,” Macdonald said, when asked about Darnold’s struggles. “It’s not just Sam. And Sam knows it. It’s not like he wants to turn it over. We need to play collectively more efficiently, and I think when that happens, the ball doesn’t come into jeopardy as much.” Again, this isn’t unfamiliar territory for Darnold and the Seahawks. They engineered the same things last year, starting 3-2 before winning 11 of the last 12 games to close out the year. In fact, Darnold also had an early-season performance to forget in a loss to the 49ers last year as well, throwing for just 150 yards in a 17-13 loss. But every year is different. This year, Darnold will have to mitigate his mistakes to help Seattle overcome its shortcomings in the running game. Can Darnold do that? Kupp certainly believes so. “The energy, the belief and the trust in Sam is unwavering,” Kupp said. “There’s just an expectation the next time to try and find a way to meet the moment.”