In Week 13 of the NFL season, Sam Darnold and the Seattle Seahawks secured a dominant 26-0 victory over the Minnesota Vikings.
In the game, Darnold threw for 128 yards on 14 completions, despite being sacked four times. He didn’t need to do much, since the Seattle defense forced four interceptions. However, Darnold did suffer a lower-body injury in the game; here is his status for Week 14.
Will Sam Darnold Play in Week 14?
Seahawks head coach Mike Macdonald earlier said after the win that Darnold was dealing with an ankle injury. Darnold frequented the blue medical tent during the game, but he didn’t miss any offensive snaps prior to the team putting in backup quarterback Drew Lock for the final drive of the 26-0 win.
However, it sounds like Darnold will be available in Week 14 against the Falcons, with Macdonald also saying after the win that the quarterback “should be good to go.” Darnold will likely appear on the team’s injury report as a limited participant, but it shouldn’t affect his availability for Week 14, considering he played through it the entire game.
In 2024, Darnold had a resurgent year after being a former first-round draft pick for the New York Jets in the 2018 NFL Draft. He spent the season with the Vikings, throwing for 4,319 yards, 35 touchdowns, and 12 interceptions.
Darnold is having another good season this year. Currently, he has 2,913 yards, 19 touchdowns, and 10 interceptions. In PFSN’s QBi metrics, he ranks seventh in the league with a grade of B- and an impact score of 82.0.
Darnold has come a long way from his former self. In his three years with the Jets, he finished with 8,097 passing yards, 45 touchdowns, and 39 interceptions.
Despite the high likelihood that Darnold plays against the Falcons, Lock will fill in if the team deems he isn’t healthy enough. Lock was drafted by the Denver Broncos, where he spent three years before joining the Seahawks in 2023, then the New York Giants in 2024, and returning to Seattle this year.
As it currently stands, the Seahawks are 9-3 in the NFC and would be the fifth seed in the playoffs if the season were to end today. The team has the same record as the Los Angeles Rams, but the Rams hold the tiebreaker, having beaten Seattle earlier in the season. The Seahawks are poised to make a playoff push and remain one of the top contenders in the conference.
