The largest, most glaring weak spot in Sam Darnold's game, despite living in a time of resurrected quarterbacks that he himself created, is turnovers, and it's what the San Francisco 49ers are banking on continuing when they meet the Seattle Seahawks on the road this weekend for an NFC West division clash.
The Seahawks are two games into Darnold's return from injury, and if honesty is valuable, his backup, Drew Lock, has looked much better this season than Darnold has. That said, Darnold's shakiness could be chalked up to working his way back from missing almost two full games. Or he's simply struggling because he's struggling.
Either way, Darnold has to be better than he's been since he returned. Better yet, Darnold has to be smarter, because if a lack of confidence or consistency when going up against this year's version of the 49ers is real for him, then it's going to be a big problem that the Seahawks may not get away with it should Darnold fail to do one thing: protect the football.
Sam Darnold could shake up the division when his Seattle Seahawks meet the San Francisco 49ers
Darnold has had an uneven, hot-and-cold start to this season, balancing high-output passing performances with ongoing issues with ball security and an injury that knocked him out of Seattle's opener against the New England Patriots.
The good news for the Seahawks was that he missed only one full game after Week 1. The not-so-good news is that since he returned, the Seahawks are 1-1, and Darnold has struggled. Despite passing for 379 yards and four touchdowns against the Washington Commanders in Week 3, he also threw two interceptions (one a pick-six) that sealed the Commanders' win.
Against the Los Angeles Chargers, a game that the Seahawks won, Darnold's numbers were unconvincing, throwing for less than 200 yards, two touchdowns, and another interception. In essentially two games (not including against the Patriots), Darnold has three turnovers, and if not for Seattle's defense, they could be 2-2 instead of 3-1.
It's a broken-record game with Darnold, but the facts remain the same: He has to do a better job protecting the football. Against the 49ers, Darnold must avoid giving Kyle Shanahan's offense opportunities to capitalize on turnovers.
While the Seahawks' defense has been great overall this season, Purdy looks as dangerous as he's ever been in his career. Seattle doesn't want to poke a bear that's leading the MVP race right now, solid defense or not. By the end of Week 5, the NFC West power rankings could shift dramatically depending on how Darnold plays.
If he plays turnover-free football and the Seahawks win, they won't just tie the 49ers' 4-1 record; they might jump them in the division power rankings. If Darnold does the opposite, even if the Seahawks win, and certainly if they lose, Darnold's continued up-and-down play might shove the Seahawks further down those rankings, keeping the 49ers up top where they deserve to be.
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