If you wanted the Seattle Seahawks to make a big statement on Sunday night, you got it and then some.
The Seattle Seahawks smashing up the New Orleans Saints in Week 3 was fun but the Saints are an atrocious team. I know the Washington Commanders are not a very good team, but to go on the road and pummel them when their backs are ostensibly up against the wall in terms of playoff hopes? This was a massive victory out of the bye, and there’s every reason to believe Seattle is a playoff contender.
Let’s get to Winners and Losers after a 38-14 victory that was not nearly as close as the final score indicated.
Sam Darnold
His first half was true perfection. No, literally. He was 16/16 for 282 yards and 4 touchdowns. Sam was only 5/8 for 48 yards and an interception after halftime, which is evidence that the decision by Mike Macdonald to bench him for Drew Lock was wholly justified.
In all seriousness, Darnold was in a zone all night and playing like an elite quarterback. Not a good quarterback. Not a great quarterback. An elite quarterback. Even if he isn’t an elite quarterback every week, the Seahawks can be a Super Bowl caliber team with how he’s performing right now.
Oh yes, and another zero-sack performance for Sam.
John Schneider
Yes, I have been a critic of Schneider in recent years; as recently as last season. If the Seahawks end the regular season as division champions and therefore a likely high seed, I would not hesitate to vote for Schneider for Executive of the Year, something he’s never won even during the Legion of Boom years. He made some big decisions this offseason that have all been hits. Trading Geno Smith and DK Metcalf, cutting Tyler Lockett, signing DeMarcus Lawrence, signing Cooper Kupp, hiring Klint Kubiak, this draft class, just about every major personnel and coaching move he’s made has panned out thus far.
Perhaps this doesn’t quite make total sense given this is only year two without any Pete Carroll influence, but I think Schneider is at his best when he makes major changes than when he mostly tries to stay the course with an existing roster and make minimal changes. Schneider still did a great job with the 2022 offseason and obviously was instrumental in the extreme makeover of the 2010 roster. This 2025 offseason has been masterful, and he still has time to make it better at the trade deadline.
Mike Macdonald
This is Mike’s team, and it looks like one of the best coached units in the league. His defense continues to dominate despite repeated injuries at all three levels. The penalties and signs of dysfunction have been minimal. Macdonald has responded brilliantly since the Tampa Bay Buccaneers loss, and this was a complete performance from offense, defense, and special teams.
Klint Kubiak
No gimmick plays, no overthinking, just line up and ball. Everything was working for Kubiak at all parts of the field, and there was nothing the Commanders could do about it. This was a masterclass in game planning and execution by Seattle’s offensive coordinator.
Tory Horton
I proclaimed Horton as an eventual WR2 for the Seahawks. One game won’t make me declare he’s got that over Cooper Kupp already, but after back-to-back outings without a catch, Horton had four catches for 48 yards and a pair of touchdowns. The fifth-round pick has six total touchdowns, including five receiving. Give it time, because Horton is going to be a fixture in this offense moving forward.
Offensive Line
Not for the run blocking, because that’s still not been. stellar, but the pass protection this unit is providing is stellar. Darnold was rarely pressured, not sacked, and everything looks so assignment sound. The Seahawks have played eight games and Darnold hasn’t been sacked 10 times yet. Do you realize how insane that is given Seattle’s extensive history of high sack rates for almost 20 years?
Grey Zabel has been so good for a rookie and that is best case scenario knowing learning curves for linemen. They hardly did anything objectionable protecting for No. 14, who had the freedom to sling it around the yard.
Defensive Line
That 157 yards rushing was fairly deceiving given Jayden Daniels’ scrambles and a lot of second half garbage time. This run defense is outstanding and there is such little room to operate. Leonard Williams, Jarran Reed, and Byron Murphy II are the “do not pass” interior defensive line. Lest we forget the contributions of Tank Lawrence, Uchenna Nwosu (who had another sack), the returning Derick Hall, and Boye Mafe. They all play a part in Seattle still not allowing a designed run to gain more than 13 yards all year.
Jaxon Smith-Njigba
Just eight catches for 129 yards for JSN, who is closing in on a 1,000-yard season in just nine games. He’s well on course for the greatest season any Seahawks receiver has ever had, and maybe the greatest offensive season for any Seahawk since Shaun Alexander won MVP in 2005.
Nick Emmanwori
Honestly, I am not sure Emmanwori had an actual great game, but did you see that play he made on Deebo Samuel? He ran through Treylon Burks’ block and grabbed Deebo and brought him down with one arm. This man has freakish strength and he’s making a splash play every week.
WOW! He had a great interception in preseason versus the Green Bay Packers, but his toe-tapping pick against the Commanders was befitting of a high-level wide receiver, not a reserve safety. Okada is stepping up big time in Julian Love’s absence, although there’s some bad luck with him knocking out Josh Jobe.
Cody White and Elijah Arroyo
You gotta love seeing these two get their first NFL touchdowns. The rookie Arroyo opened his account for his professional career to make it 21-0 and then Cody White turned his only catch into a 60-yard score. White has persevered like hell to even make an active roster, which he did for the first time this year before shuffling back to the practice squad. Sans Cooper Kupp, White had a healthy dose of snaps and put an exclamation point on the first half.
Brandon Pili and Connor O’Toole
The big fella forced Seattle’s first fumble all season on a kick return, and the rookie UDFA from Utah pounced on the loose football. Contributions from everyone from everywhere!
Makes my night easier when we get a game that lopsided! Even if there were some sub-par performers I do not care this evening. This is a criticism-free post. I’ll worry about the run game inconsistencies another week.
Final Notes
I feel for Jayden Daniels. Dan Quinn failed him by keeping him in the game in a lost cause. He’s already been injured twice and he was getting harassed all evening. Now the worst case scenario has happened and Daniels’ left arm is toast. The goodwill Quinn earned in 2024 by making the NFC Championship Game has immediately ended as of tonight. And his repeated inability to field a good defense as a head coach compared to defensive coordinator is staggering.
Potentially no Ernest Jones IV in the long-term could be a massive deal. We’ll know more on Monday I assume, but that is worrying and unfortunate. The Seahawks have a big hole at linebacker in his absence and it may force Seattle to be buyers at the position. No offense to Drake Thomas or Tyrice Knight, but there is a gap between them and Ernest.
Josh Jobe’s concussion meant a lot of playing time for Riq Woolen he would’ve otherwise not had. Woolen played very well with Jobe out. I wonder if Woolen’s would-be reduced snaps is an indicator of a potential trade or that this configuration would be the way moving forward: Witherspoon and Jobe primarily, Woolen secondarily.
Time for another important divisional game, which means more nonsense to come against the Arizona Cardinals. Tonight was fun, but Seattle can’t afford to take any divisional losses at this point, and especially not one against the worst team in the NFC West before facing the Los Angeles Rams.
Enemy Reaction took a hiatus for the Houston Texans game. That ain’t the case for the Commanders. See you Monday!