After last week’s big win over the Arizona Cardinals, everyone knew what the area of focus should be for the Seattle Seahawks. In fact, that’s what a postgame wrap-up pointed to:
The Seahawks are making a solid case for being the best team in the NFC and will be able to cement their claim with a win over the Rams, but they’ll need to tighten up on turnovers. (Sam) Darnold had two fumbles and an interception, all with some fair context, but two resulted in Cardinals scores. Before today, Seattle was tied for the most fumbles given away (seven) and the third-most total giveaways (13).
To the surprise of absolutely nobody, turnovers against the Los Angeles Rams did in fact prove costly on Sunday. And there were many. Sam Darnold threw four interceptions, which wasn’t just a season-high – it was the most he’s thrown in a game since his time with the New York Jets.
That’s not to say it’s unsurprising that Seattle lost to the Rams. They were evenly matched entering the Week 11 showdown. But while the Seahawks had an edge on special teams and against the run defensively, their turnovers would be a major issue, and the best offense they’d faced all season took advantage.
Recap: Darnold throws four picks, Rams beat Seahawks 21-19
It’s also important here to note that this wasn’t a “Seahawks offense can’t stop turning the ball over” problem. This was a Darnold problem. Running backs Kenneth Walker III and Zach Charbonnet made solid plays. Jaxon Smith-Njigba continued to make being the league’s receiving yards leader look easy.
The Darnold problem has been one Seattle has played without mostly all season. While he’s tossed a few interceptions and lost a few fumbles, he’s also been the NFL’s most explosive passer. This team wasn’t winning in spite of him, but rather because of him and the passing offense (and their unbelievable defense).
Two questions lingered. First, whether the run could get going, as opposing defenses had been matching base defense to stop it and Darnold was facing more stacked boxes than almost any other passer. And second, of course, was whether the bad version of Darnold would reappear.
The Rams looked to force Seattle to run, and two of Darnold’s interceptions were thrown into double coverage. That’ll continue to be an issue against opposing defenses until Seattle — specifically Darnold — learns to fix it.
Who else?
Oh, you think the bad version of Darnold is back? Well… you’ll just have to deal with it then.
There is no backup plan right now for Darnold. And frankly, that’s OK. He’s been otherwise great for the Seahawks this season, and this team is playing like an NFC contender. There’s no reason to hit the panic button on a quarterback who the vast majority of fans in and outside of Seattle assumed was a short-term solution anyways.
This isn’t the Bears trying to answer whether Caleb Williams is the guy. This is a Seattle team still looking for a long-term answer that was hoping it could be Darnold, but was hardly counting on it – a safe assumption given the lack of guaranteed money invested in him beyond 2025.
The plan was to win with a great defense and a great run game, but only half of the solution is working right now.
All eyes on Zabel
The other half of the solution — the run game — takes another hit if rookie guard Grey Zabel is out for the season. He provided a key block on Walker’s 25-yard run Sunday, and pass protection has been significantly improved for Seattle this season, and Zabel deserves credit as the first-round draft pick has yet to allow a sack.
“No update, we’ll get it imaged and see what’s going on,” Mike Macdonald told reporters postgame, confirming it was a knee injury for Zabel.
More on the Seattle Seahawks
• Observations from Seahawks’ 21-19 loss to Rams
• Instant Reaction: Turnovers doom Seahawks in loss to Rams
• Roster Moves: Seahawks place center Jalen Sundell on IR
• Kyle Brandt: JSN’s historic start still not getting enough attention
• Seattle Seahawks’ Lawrence named NFC Defensive Player of the Week