The Seattle Seahawks had the game exactly where they wanted it, on the arm of Sam Darnold, but the quarterback threw a critical interception to condemn his team to a 38-35 defeat to the Tampa Bay Buccaneers in Week 5, and the Pro-Bowl passer knows who is to blame.
Speaking to reporters after the epic shootout at Lumen Field on Sunday, October 5, Darnold explained why “that was bad quarterback play on the last snap,” per the Tacoma News Tribune’s Greg Bell.
The pick happened when 35-year-old middle linebacker Lavonte David grabbed a pass that had bounced off the helmet of Tampa defensive lineman Logan Hall. Darnold admitted it “was on him for not changing to a better protection call at the line. He went with one protection #Seahawks had also practiced vs that Bucs’ look. Said Tory Horton was open on the side.”
Not identifying the blitz and adjusting protection meant that instead of targeting rookie wide receiver Tory Horton in space, Darnold “was trying to just throw the ball away,” according to Seahawks.com Senior Reporter John Boyle.
While Darnold did the job of a starting NFL QB by fronting up to take the blame, the Seahawks also faltered in other key areas. Like when a supposedly stingy defense was shredded by Bucs’ quarterback Baker Mayfield and his receivers.
Darnold produced some vintage hero ball to try and keep pace, but his critical error proved the difference. It also served as a worrying reminder of the issue that ended his breakout 2024 campaign.
Sam Darnold Delivered the Good and the Bad
This was almost a classic Darnold game. One where he produced 341 yards and four touchdowns through the air, with most of those yards being manufactured off-script.
A notable ad-libbed big play was the 21-yard touchdown pass to Horton in the fourth quarter. The score was created by Darnold using his legs to move the pocket, before throwing off platform.
As ESPN’s Brady Henderson put it, “Darnold’s ability to escape pressure and create big plays on scrambles has been an unmistakable theme to the start of his Seahawks career.
Horton has been making multiple big plays as a steal selected in the fifth round of the 2025 NFL draft, but he’s also benefitted from Darnold’s aggressive playing style. It’s something that gives and takes away from the Seahawks.
Darnold took away a likely W when he made the decisive turnover.
There was an element of misfortune to the play, but Darnold lost his nerve in the face of pressure. Sadly, it’s a familiar problem for the former New York Jets and Minnesota Vikings starter.
Seahawks Have a Pressure Problem
He wasn’t sacked, but Darnold was put under intense pressure in the key moment of the game. The 28-year-old’s reaction was eerily reminiscent of how his lone season with the Vikings ended.
Darnold revived his career by throwing for 4,319 yards and 35 touchdowns to propel the Vikings into the playoffs, but his fatal flaw was soon exposed. It was done by Seattle’s NFC West rivals the Los Angeles Rams, who rushed Darnold into oblivion in the wild-card round.
He was sacked nine times, often after holding onto the ball for too long in the pocket.
It’s a cruel twist of irony that Darnold was punished for trying to throw the ball away quickly against the Bucs’ blitz, but reacting to pressure is still proving a problem. One that wasted an otherwise superb performance from Darnold and cost the Seahawks what would’ve been a statement win.
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