INGLEWOOD, Calif. – What will get the most attention from Sunday’s 21-19 loss to the Rams, in which Seahawks quarterback Sam Darnold threw four interceptions, is the message teammate Ernest Jones IV sent defending him.
Speaking in the interview room on the podium in front of a full phalanx of cameras, Jones said: “He’s our quarterback. We’ve got his back,” before closing the statement with choice words for anyone who might doubt Darnold.
What might be just as meaningful is the message the Seahawks sent in never backing down from the Rams despite the four Darnold interceptions.
Despite all that gift-giving, a truly tenacious D, that didn’t allow a drive of longer than 25 yards in the final three quarters, and the resilience of the entire team – Darnold included – the Seahawks lined up for a 61-yard field goal with one second left that could have won the game.
Jason Myers has a career-best of 62 at Detroit a year ago, and hope was more than alive.
This kick was short and to the right, allowing the Rams to survive , improve to 8-2 and take a one-game lead in the NFC West on the Seahawks.
“Obviously, we’re disappointed,” Seahawks coach Mike Macdonald said. “But it’s very clear to me that we have a great team and we’re going to learn to win games like that.”
The big lesson seems clear: Figure out a way for Darnold to cut down on his recent turnovers.
Cut out one and the Seahawks probably win a game in which it outgained the Rams 414-249 and held the ball for 37:49.
Darnold’s four interceptions Sunday tied his career high, were his most since 2019, and were the most for a Seahawks quarterback since Russell Wilson had five in a 38-10 loss at Green Bay on Dec. 11, 2016.
Darnold has thrown seven interceptions in the last four games and 10 for the season, third in the NFL behind the 13 of Miami’s Tua Tagovailoa and 12 of the Raiders’ Geno Smith, the player Darnold replaced.
Darnold has 14 total turnovers, tied with Tagovailoa for most in the NFL.
“Can’t turn the ball over as much as I did today,” Darnold said candidly if also obviously when he met the media just before Jones.
Worse is that the picks will only reinforce the perception that Darnold is capable of playing really well most of the time but struggles against elite teams in big-game situations, as he did against the Rams twice a year ago with the Vikings, most notably a 27-9 wild-card playoff loss.
Darnold was sacked nine times in that game and said this week the lesson of that game was to get the ball out quicker, or at least make sure to get it out at all.
He wasn’t sacked at all Sunday but several times seemed to hurry throws to avoid the sack, which led to interceptions.
“Sometimes it’s better just to try to throw the ball away or even take a sack when nothing is there,” Darnold acknowledged.
The Rams seemed to hint that their defensive backs played aggressively, thinking Darnold would be in sack-avoidance mode.
“I thought a lot of the pressure that we did get is what led to some of the decisions where our guys ended up making some great plays to be able to get those four interceptions throughout the course of the day,” Rams coach Sean McVay said.
Macdonald said he’d need more time to sort it out.
“It’s probably a combination of multiple things, so we’ll attack it and figure out what we can do to not put the ball in jeopardy,” Macdonald said.
It didn’t help that the Seahawks were held to field goals on three drives in the first half that reached the L.A. 12, 3 and 11.
“I felt like despite the turnovers, we moved the ball well. We just couldn’t finish in the red zone. I think that was a big thing today,” Darnold said.
Darnold threw an interception on the third snap of the game for the offense – which came after the defense stopped a fourth-and-one by the Rams at the Seattle 8 – to foreshadow the tough day ahead.
That pick came when he tried to hit Cooper Kupp on a first down at the 21. Rams safety Kamren Kinchens broke in front of the Kupp to pick it off at the 34 and returned it to the 3.
That led to the first TD for the Rams and a 7-0 lead with 8:38 to play in the first quarter.
Darnold’s second pick came on the first series of the second half, when Darnold tried to thread it to Jaxon Smith-Njigba on an out route. Darnold was hit by Rams linebacker Byron Young as he threw and the ball floated to the sidelines where Rams cornerback Cobie Durant picked it off at the Seattle 45 and returned it to the 35.
The Seahawks got out of that drive quickly as Coby Bryant punched the ball out of Rams’ receiver Puka Nacua for a fumble two plays later that was recovered by Drake Thomas.
The third Darnold pick proved disastrous.
The Seahawks had just stopped the Rams again and had the ball at their own 27, a play that followed a holding penalty on Anthony Bradford that moved the Seahawks back 10 yards.
Darnold tried to tight end Elijah Arroyo on a seam route only for Kinchens to again break in front of it and return it to the Seattle 25.
The Rams needed just four plays to convert that into a touchdown and a 21-12 lead with 14:15 remaining.
On a third down on the following possession with the Seahawks at the Rams’ 36 Darnold got heavy pressure in the pocket as he tried to step up. Appearing not to want to get sacked and take them out of field goal range, he threw a pass into traffic to Arroyo. This time, it was cornerback Darious Williams who got the pick, returning it to the Seattle 49.
The defense again held the Rams.
And the Seahawks somehow got back in the game.
Darnold led an 11-play, 84-yard drive that ended in a Kenneth Walker III 1-yard TD run that made it 21-19 with 2:23 left, completing all six of his passes for 63 yards.
The Seahawks stopped the Rams, and could only watch as the punt of the Rams’ Ethan Evans went out at the 1-yard line.
That left the Seahawks with 1:41 to play and one time out to try to pull out a miracle.
It almost happened as Darnold completed two passes on third downs to get them moving. L.A.’s Emmanuel Forbes Jr. was called for defensive pass interference on Smith-Njigba, moving the ball to the L.A. 49 with five seconds left.
A Darnold pass to Rashid Shaheed moved it to the 43, and what some on the Rams sideline felt was a favorable clock left one second for the Seahawks to win it.
The kick was just off, giving the Seahawks their third loss by four or fewer points this season, snapping a team record 10-game road winning streak, and marking their second loss in three games under Macdonald to the Rams, each decided on the final play or in overtime.
“Our guys stuck together,” Macdonald said. “Had a great attitude, and played tough as nails so we’ll look at it. We’ll see what happens. We’re going to be seeing a lot of these guys. We’re going to see them twice a year, possibly three, and to me it’s who evolves best from game to game? Who learns from that? Who grows the most is going to get the advantage every time we play.”
Or as veteran defensive Leonard Williams put it: “I just know I look forward to seeing them again.”