Sam Darnold slammed his blue helmet onto the top notch of the bench.
He had just thrown his third bad interception into tight and double coverage deep in his team’s end of the field. The same team that ended Darnold’s wondrous 2024 season with the Minnesota Vikings was altering his previously glowing 2025 with the Seahawks. And then on his next drive, with his team in position to score to stay in the game down 21-12 in the fourth quarter, he did it again.
A fourth interception. A second slam of the helmet onto the bench. A long exhale.
In his biggest game yet as the franchise’s quarterback, Darnold flopped. His performance at the Los Angeles Rams for the NFC West lead was as alarming as it was decisive. For this game, anyway.
Darnold’s four interceptions and the offense driving into L.A.’s 20-yard line twice yet scoring only field goals, not touchdowns ruined coach Mike Macdonald’s defense throttling Sean McVay’s offense for most of Seattle’s second loss in eight games, 21-19 to the Rams at SoFi Stadium Sunday.
Darnold tried to rally Seattle late. He drove the Seahawks to Kenneth Walker’s 1-yard touchdown run with 2:27 left. Then after his defense stopped the Rams on third down, Darnold started a drive at his own 1-yard line down 21-19 with 1:41 and two time outs remaining.
A 12-yard pass to Jaxon Smith-Njigba got Seattle to its own 38. But only 17 seconds and one time out remained.
A pass-interference penalty on the Rams put the ball at the L.A. 49 with 5 seconds to go. Darnold completed a pass to Rashid Shaheed and got the ball to the Rams 43. Seattle called time out with 1 second left.
Jason Myers lined up for a 61-yard field goal, which would have tied his career high he set in 2020 on this same, indoor, turf field. The kick was well short.
Darnold completed 29 of 44 passes for 279 yards, no touchdowns with the four interceptions. The four picks tied the 28-year-old eighth-year veteran’s career high. They were his most since he threw four in his failed, rookie season with the New York Jets in 2018 and again in his second NFL season of ‘19.
It’s been nine years since a Seahawks quarterback threw so many interceptions. Russell Wilson threw five at Green Bay in 2016. Geno Smith never threw more than the three he threw in a game last season — against the Rams.
The Seahawks traded Smith after that, and signed Darnold from Minnesota to a three-year contract worth up to $100.5 million.
Smith-Njigba had nine catches for 105 yards on passes Darnold completed to his teammates. Walker rushed for 67 yards on 16 carries, including a 25-yard burst in the second half for Seattle (7-3).
The Seahawks fell a game behind the Rams (8-2) for the NFC West lead. Six games remain in the regular season. The next for Seattle is next weekend at Tennessee (1-9). Seattle’s missed chances
Seattle had two drives inside the Rams 20-yard line produce only field goals, not touchdowns, to end the first half and early in the second.
Darnold began the second half by throwing his second bad interception of the day. He forced a pass toward Smith-Njigba into tight coverage while L.A.’s top pass rusher Byron Young hit him. Cornerback Cobie Durant intercepted the pass and returned it to the Seattle 34.
The Seahawks were in danger of falling behind two scores in the third quarter.
Then Coby Bryant hit L.A.’s Puka Nacua hard with his shoulder pads after his catch. The ball popped free to Seattle linebacker Drake Thomas for a huge fumble recovery.
It was as if Darnold never threw the second pick.
On the ensuing drive he fired a dart to new wide receiver Rashid Shaheed for 21 yards across midfield. Darnold then connected with AJ Barner for 13 more yards inside the Rams 30.
The Seahawks and Kenneth Walker thought he had run 15 yards for a touchdown and the lead to end that drive. But officials rightly penalized rookie tight end Nick Kallerup for holding L.A. linebacker Nick Hampton outside as Walker was running around them to the end zone.
Instead of leading 16-14, Seattle had first and 20. The possession ended in Jason Myers’ fourth field goal instead of the TD. The Rams still led 14-12.
While the offense chopped incrementally into L.A.’s lead, coach Mike Macdonald’s Seahawks defense held the Rams to 61 total yards on four drives with only two first downs allowed. Those Los Angeles possessions from the second quarter into the fourth period were to a punt, fumble, punt and punt. Long drives get Seattle back in it
Down 14-3 and getting dominated early in the second quarter, the Seahawks righted themselves back into the game. A three-and-out on defense thanks to defensive tackle Byron Murphy’s brilliant, open-field tackle of Rams running back Kyren Williams from behind and two scoring drives of 13 and 15 plays to field goals. Those marches used 14:47 of the 15:00 of the second quarter to get Seattle back in the game. Smith-Njigba had a fantastic catch of Darnold’s line-drive pass with one hand while deftly getting both feet down just inside the left sideline. That 34-yard gain by the NFL’s leader in yards receiving allowed the Seahawks to run out the final 2-plus minutes of the first half.
Seattle received the second-half kickoff trailing only 14-9. Seahawks’ poor start, for a change
Seattle had out-scored its previous three foes 42-0 in the first quarter entering Sunday.
The Texans, Commanders and Cardinals are absolutely not the Rams.
Sunday in the first quarter the Rams gained 134 yards to the Seahawks’ 44. L.A. ran 21 offensive plays to Seattle’s 10.
Darnold’s mostly splendid first two months as Seattle’s quarterback was the opposite of that to start Sunday. His second pass was bad, toward Cooper Kupp in the left slot with two Rams double-covering him on either side. Safety Kamren Kinchens — the Ram who intercepted Geno Smith and ran it back 103 yards for the play that sent L.A. past Seattle at Lumen Field last season in a loss that ultimately cost the Seahawks a playoff berth — intercepted Darnold’s poor throw early Sunday.
Kinchen’s 31-yard return of the pick to the 3-yard line set the Rams off to a quick 7-0 lead, on Kyren Williams’ 1-yard touchdown run on fourth and goal.
Darnold completed only three of his six passes in the opening quarter. Two short-hopped Rashid Shaheed and Kupp. Kupp’s was on a third and long in L.A. territory one drive after Darnold’s early interception. Seattle settled for Myers’ 57-yard field goal to cut L.A.’s lead to 7-3.
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