The Seahawks are getting their starting quarterback back at the right time, but they are not getting back to full strength around him. Sam Darnold is scheduled to start Sunday against the Washington Commanders after missing most of the first two games with a glute injury, and that changes the feel of Seattle’s offense immediately. The problem is that the defense will be working with a thinner margin after Julian Love and Ty Okada were ruled out.
That is the central tension in this matchup: Seattle can finally put its Week 1 starter back under center, yet it must do so while reshuffling the back end of the defense. Mike Macdonald confirmed Friday that Darnold will play, saying he is “ready to go” and noting that he has looked “really good” after a limited return on Wednesday and full participation on Thursday and Friday. For a team that already navigated his absence by beating the Arizona Cardinals 31-7 behind Drew Lock, the return still matters because it restores the intended structure of the offense.
Darnold’s return changes the offense, not the story of the first two games
Darnold’s injury came on the fifth play of Seattle’s win over the New England Patriots in Week 1, and the Seahawks have spent the last two games managing around it. Lock’s work in the 2-0 start bought them time, but Darnold remains the quarterback the staff was preparing to build around. This will be his third straight start if he finishes the week healthy, and it is his first start since entering the NFL in 2023.
The encouraging part for Seattle is that the medical progression was clean enough for him to go from limited on Wednesday to a full participant on Thursday and Friday. Macdonald said the key was simply seeing Darnold confident in what he has been doing, and the coach praised how much work he has taken on. That is the kind of update a team wants when a starter is returning from an injury that cost him most of the first two games.
The secondary has a different problem
The more immediate concern may be on defense, where Love was a nonparticipant on Thursday after his calf tightened up and then again on Friday, when he was ruled out. Okada was also ruled out Friday. That leaves Seattle adjusting at safety while Brandon Pili is listed as questionable and Nick Emmanwori has been a full participant for the third straight day.
Macdonald did not hide his frustration about losing Love, calling him a huge part of the team’s strong start and noting that he has had an interception in three straight games dating back to Seattle’s Super Bowl LX win over New England. He also pointed out that Love is handling it as a day-to-day, week-to-week situation and said he is working hard. That may be true, but it does not help Sunday’s lineup sheet.
Why the return still matters
This is the kind of situation that can define early-season identity. The Seahawks do not need Darnold to be perfect in his first game back; they need him to stabilize the offense and avoid making the injury look bigger than it is. If he is sharp, Seattle can keep the momentum of its 2-0 start without asking the defense to win every phase.
That is what makes Sunday interesting. The Seahawks are not just getting their quarterback back. They are also finding out how much of their early-season advantage can survive when the lineup is incomplete on both sides of the ball.
