"I've got to go back to the archives for that," Darnold said. "I think I had a similar game in high school, but college or pro, that's probably the most consecutively."
Not long after the first incompletion, Darnold had his first real mistake of the game, throwing behind Cody White while rolling to his left on third down, leading to an interception, but he bounced right back from that to lead a touchdown drive that removed any shred of suspense from the game. In all, Darnold completed 21 of 24 passes for 330 yards and four touchdowns, giving him a 141.0 passer rating, his second game this season with at least 300 yards and four touchdowns, and his fifth in the last six games with a rating of 111.4 or better.
"Sam's execution right now, it's just ridiculous," Seahawks coach Mike Macdonald said. "All the things we talked about that he's been doing—decisive, making smart decisions."
And as great as Darnold was, Macdonald wasn't surprised to see his quarterback put up such impressive numbers.
"Believe me when I say, I'm not surprised," Macdonald said. "We watched Sam every day on how he operates, and he's the same guy every day, which is what you love about him. And we're chasing it. The guys are determined, and it's fun to watch. And when the team comes together, that's this type of stuff that you can do when you play the right way, you prepare the right way. And our coaches deserve a lot of credit too, man. I thought (Offensive Coordinator) Klint (Kubiak) called a great game. All the coaches involved in the game plan process, I thought we had some great answers, and it all came together."
Darnold opened his day by leading a 90-yard touchdown drive, one that saw the Seahawks overcome three penalties for 25 yards on the possession, including a 15-yarder that set up first-and-25. He capped the drive with a touchdown to rookie Tory Horton, who was starting in place of an injured Cooper Kupp, and Darnold would go on to lead the Seahawks to four touchdowns on their first four possessions while going 5 for 5 on third down in the first half.
"Sam, he plays with that chip on his shoulder, he's always bringing his A game, and you can tell how bad he wants it," Horton said. "From the whole week of preparing, we knew he was going to be dialed in. He's one hell of a quarterback, he's on fire right now."
Added Cody White, who had a 60-yard touchdown, "He's playing great football right now. We can't ask for anything more."