Barring a highly improbable turn of events, Sam Darnold will be starting the Seattle Seahawks’ Divisional Round playoff game against the San Francisco 49ers. Darnold was a surprise addition to the Seahawks’ injury report earlier this week with a strained oblique muscle, but he has made it clear he will be on the field for Seattle’s first playoff game in three years.
NFL quarterbacks are preternaturally tough human beings. Back in 1988, Washington quarterback Doug Williams needed an emergency appendectomy early in the season. He was playing one month later. Baker Mayfield played with a torn labrum a few years back. I can’t even begin to run through all the QBs who have played with separated shoulders and broken fingers.
A strained oblique may not sound like much, but for a quarterback, it's a big deal. The obliques are on the side of the torso and are in play any time a quarterback twists his body. Every throw involves the obliques. Simply moving around in the pocket does as well. So Darnold is going to play, but his injury will have an effect on his performance and could certainly impact how the game develops.
What Sam Darnold’s injury means for the Seattle Seahawks' first playoff game
The Seahawks beat this 49er team two weeks ago. Seattle’s defense was dominant. They held the 49ers to 173 total yards and 3 points. And that was a San Francisco team that had tight end George Kittle on the field.
A rested Seahawks’ team should hold the 49ers offense in check once again. But Kyle Shanahan is among the sharpest offensive coaches in the NFL, and Mike Macdonald can be sure the 49ers will have new wrinkles come Saturday.
Even so, Macdonald enters this game recognizing that his offense will not have to be sensational. What they need to do more than anything else is keep control of the ball. That’s what they did in the Week 18 showdown, running up a significant time of possession lead.
Assuming Darnold is healthy enough to play the entire game, Klint Kubiak will most likely double down on the type of offense Seattle has been running over the past several months. Lots of 12 and 13 personnel – which may mean blocking tight end Nick Kallerup is active for the game. Lots of Kenneth Walker III and Zach Charbonnet.
But San Francisco’s Robert Saleh is an equally sharp defensive coordinator. He will crowd the box and try to stuff the run. He will challenge Darnold to beat his defense through the air. Look for him to crowd the middle and tempt Darnold to make throws outside the numbers.
Those deep outs are where Darnold’s limitations could be most evident. And for Seattle, most dangerous. If he doesn’t have his typical zip, an underthrown out pattern can turn into a pick-six very quickly. And Seattle has no defense for that.
Were Darnold to suffer any kind of setback, Drew Lock would take over, and chances are the game plan would remain intact. But we also might see the return of Jalen Milroe in Seattle’s biggest game of the year.
The rookie QB has been largely forgotten this year. He hasn’t seen the field since early October. But if Macdonald and Kubiak are looking to limit the amount of pounding Darnold takes, is it possible Milroe will be on the field for a few snaps when running plays are likely?
If the coaches trust his ability to maintain ball security, that would throw in a new wrinkle for Saleh’s defenders to worry about while saving Darnold a few hits.
Early on, some fans saw Milroe’s outstanding running ability as a potential secret weapon for the Seahawks’ offense. But two things became apparent in the first month of the season. First, Milroe was far from ready to play important snaps in the NFL. What’s more, the Hawks’ offense didn’t need him. It functioned very well with Darnold as the undisputed, full-time signal caller.
Injury may force Seattle out of that comfort zone in the most important game it has played since January 2023 … against these same San Francisco 49ers. If Darnold has to leave the field even for a few snaps on Saturday, both Lock and MIlroe might be called on to step up.
Seattle’s defense should do the heavy lifting in getting a victory, but the offense – regardless of who is under center – will need to provide support.