-
Brady Henderson
Seattle– Sam Darnold‘s oblique injury became the biggest story in Seattle’s divisional round matchup san francisco 49ers On Saturday, the Seahawks and their fans were left horrified after the Pro Bowl quarterback skipped practice two days earlier.
It soon became an afterthought.
Rasheed Shaheed Returned the opening kickoff for a touchdown, kicking off an all-three-point thrashing by the Seahawks. win 41-6 at their division rivals at Lumen Field. They jumped out to a 17–0 lead and never looked back as their top-ranked scoring defense dominated San Francisco for the second consecutive game. Kenneth Walker III And his emerging run game led the way offensively.
And Darnold seemed just fine.
“This is probably the most complementary game we’ve ever played,” coach Mike McDonald said. Whose team will host either of them. Chicago Bears Or Los Angeles Rams Next Sunday in the NFC Championship Game.
The Seahawks handed the 49ers the most lopsided defeat of the Kyle Shanahan era, which began in 2017. For McDonald, who replaces Pete Carroll in 2024, it was the third-most wins by a head coach in his playoff debut in NFL history, according to ESPN Research.
It came in front of a raucous crowd, as the Seahawks held their first playoff game with fans in the stands in nine years. Lumen Field was already buzzing when Shaheed sent it into a frenzy by returning the opening kickoff 95 yards for a touchdown.
“A really good team won from the first snap,” said Darnold, who earned the first playoff win of his eight-year career. “Kickoff, [Shaheed] To take it home, that was special. Even to hear that stadium rocking the way it was tonight, it’s incredible, man. 12 came out. Had fun. Our defense is doing its job. And as an offense, ball control too, I feel like that was huge for all of us in the game and closing in the red zone.”
When asked about his pain level, Darnold simply said, “I felt great. Felt great.”
Darnold suffered the injury while he was throwing during a route-on-air period early Thursday morning. After “feeling a little something” in his left side he left practice to receive treatment, saying there was no point in pursuing it further.
Both Darnold and McDonald expressed confidence that he would play despite his questionable designation, although the coaches acknowledged the possibility that their quarterback might be limited.
Darnold’s decision not to come onto the field for pregame warmups added to the intrigue. He said he left it in the locker room to avoid essentially having to warm up twice.
Once the game began, he appeared to be unaffected by the injury, moving well and throwing with his usual zip. His only touchdown pass came in the first quarter of the play, in which he rolled to his left and delivered a strike into the end zone. Jackson Smith-Njigba.
“I felt good and if I was hurt, I think you all would probably know about it,” he said. “So no, I felt great the whole game. And every hit I took, I didn’t feel it on that side.”
Darnold completed 12 of 17 passes for 124 yards and no turnovers. drew lock Replaced him with nine minutes remaining. With this win he received another $500,000 in incentive money.
“Terrific,” McDonald said of his quarterback’s performance. “I think there was some drama in the beginning [it took him] To get into the swing of things. But I say that as a very strong compliment to how the game ‘manages’. Just throwing it on time, taking care of the ball, making plays when needed. I think there might be some explosives in there that we might be able to get to. But shoot, I thought he did a lot of operations that really helped us too.”
Darnold said the injury is “absolutely” something he will have to continue to deal with throughout the remainder of the playoffs.
Depending on how well Seattle’s defense is playing, their run could go to Levi’s Stadium for Super Bowl LX.
When the Seahawks played against San Francisco in that building in Week 18, they held the NFL’s leading offensive tackle at the time to a field goal. They were equally effective in the playoff rematch, as McDonald’s unit forced three takeaways as well as three more turnovers on downs, making it eight consecutive quarters in which they kept Purdy and the 49ers out of the end zone.
linebacker Ernest Jones IVThe forward, who made second-team All-Pro, was responsible for two accomplishments – a forced fumble in the first quarter and an interception of Purdy in the third. He had been battling an illness earlier in the week and, as MacDonald said, “wasn’t in good shape” on Wednesday.
“So for him to get momentum, to be ready to play, guys follow his lead,” McDonald said. “Two tremendous plays that really changed the course of the game with those takeaways.”
The Seahawks pressured Purdy on 19 of their 33 dropbacks (58%). According to ESPN Research, this was the second-highest rate of pressure and the most pressure Purdy has faced in a game in his career. He completed 6 of 14 attempts for 74 yards, one interception, two sacks and lost a fumble when pressured.
Darnold, on the other hand, did not turn the ball over after leading all players with 20 rebounds in the regular season. They didn’t need to stress the issue with how well their defense and run game was playing.
After struggling to generate a consistent rushing attack in the regular season, that part of Clint Kubiak’s offense is now taking off. Seattle has rushed for at least 160 yards in four straight games, including 175 Saturday.
Walker ran for 116 yards on 19 attempts and led Zach Charbonnet Missed the second half due to a knee injury. All three of his touchdowns and 110 of Seattle’s rushing yards came off tackle.
“It’s for everybody,” McDonald said of Seattle’s run game. “Our coaches deserve a lot of credit. The K9s obviously played very well. A lot of it is coming in the wide area. It’s something we’ve had to work on all year and that’s where we hang our hat, so it’s great to see it come to life.”
Macdonald said he is “optimistic” about Charbonnet, adding: “We’ll have to take pictures of it and get stuff ready, but early indications are hopefully it’s structurally fine.”
left tackle charles cross Got a leg injury in the third quarter also. MacDonald said he took him “out of caution” as soon as the win was in hand, adding: “But we still have to work on his leg, so I’ve got no clue as to what it’s going to look like.”
Despite those injuries and Darnold’s, the Seahawks tied the club’s largest margin of victory in a playoff game with their 43–8 victory in Super Bowl XLVIII. Another home win next week would give them a chance to claim the franchise’s second Lombardi Trophy.
“It was a huge win, man,” McDonald said. “In the locker room, we’re really excited, we’re very proud of the effort, and guys understand there’s still a mission at hand. We’ve got another week coming up, we need to take care of business every day, and that’s the focus. Proud of the group. We’ll celebrate today, guys will be off tomorrow and come back on Monday.”
