-
Brady Henderson
RENTON, Wash. — Seattle Seahawks coach Mike Macdonald said Friday he is “very optimistic” that Sam Darnold will play Saturday against the San Francisco 49ers despite re-injurying his oblique, echoing what the Pro Bowl quarterback said a day earlier.
But in his final comments before the Seahawks’ divisional round playoff game against their NFC West rival, Macdonald left open the possibility that the injury could take a turn before or after the 8 p.m. ET kickoff.
The Seahawks listed Darnold as questionable Thursday after he left practice earlier in the day when he felt something in his left side. He told reporters about two hours later that he planned to play.
“Speaking of Sam, I heard what he said to you guys yesterday; I see it the same way,” Macdonald told reporters Friday. “We’re considering him questionable. Really optimistic he’ll be able to play. Right now we’re going through all the protocol…just out of an abundance of caution to make sure we’re good to go. We’ll test him tomorrow and kind of make the final decision, but again, we’re optimistic he’s going to play.
“If he doesn’t, or at some point, then (Drew Lock is) ready to go, and that’s why Drew is here. He’s doing a great job.”
The Seahawks hosted a visit Friday, as they usually do the day before a game. Macdonald did not respond when asked if Darnold threw during the session. As the coach spoke to reporters on the sidelines of the team’s indoor practice facility, Darnold and Lock went over plays on the field with receiver Jake Bobo. Darnold was only seen making light, underhand throws.
Macdonald was asked if Darnold was better physically on Friday.
“He says he feels better,” Macdonald said. “But you talked to him. He’s confident he can play. We feel the same way.”
Do you think he could be limited on Saturday?
“Well, yes, that’s a possibility,” Macdonald said. “I think right now he’s confident that he’s going to be able to do his job 100 percent. So are we. But with these things, something could change between now and then or something could happen in the game. So we kind of just have to go with it.”
Lock, a seventh-year veteran with a 10-18 record in 28 career starts, is Darnold’s backup. Jalen Milroe, a rookie third-round pick, is Seattle’s QB3. Milroe has been inactive as a healthy scratch over the past 12 games, although he has continued to serve as an emergency third-down quarterback.
Darnold told reporters he “felt a little something” in the oblique on his left side Thursday while throwing during a live broadcast period and left practice as a precaution. Seattle listed him as a limited participant that day.
“I just didn’t want to push things,” Darnold said. “It wasn’t the day to push things. So that was it. I just got back, did some rehab and I feel like I’ll be ready to go on Saturday.”
Darnold was asked what percentage of him thought he might not play Saturday.
“Very low percentage,” he said. “Probably closer to zero.”
Darnold said he has never dealt with an oblique injury and will receive further treatment between now and the game, adding: “We will attack it in the next few days and be ready to play on Saturday.”
Aside from Darnold’s questionable status, the only other Seattle players with game designations are tight end Elijah Arroyo, linebacker Chazz Surratt and tackle Josh Jones, all replacements who have been ruled out. Left tackle Charles Cross and safety Coby Bryant will return after missing three and two games, respectively.
Cross was limited Wednesday due to a new knee injury, but returned to full participation Thursday.
“I just got a little confused in practice,” Macdonald said of Cross. “So we’re working on it. He’s ready to go. It’s more a precautionary thing than anything else.”
Darnold, signed by the Seahawks in March after trading Geno Smith to the Las Vegas Raiders, is set to make the second playoff start of his eight-year NFL career. He echoed a sentiment shared earlier this week by Macdonald about not getting lost in the playoff hype.
“We look at it as another week, another game,” Darnold said. “…We have great guys in this locker room, mature leaders in every position group. So everyone is ready to go, attack the week, as usual, and get ready to take on a very good 49ers team that’s rolling, and we’re excited to take on them.”
Darnold and the Seahawks defeated the 49ers in Week 18 at Levi’s Stadium to win the NFC West and secure first place in the conference. With the win, Seattle finished the regular season 14-3, the same record Darnold posted last year with the Minnesota Vikings en route to his first career Pro Bowl selection.
He made the Pro Bowl again this year after completing 67.7 percent of his passes for 4,048 yards and 25 touchdowns, while committing an NFL-high 20 turnovers.
Darnold lost his playoff debut last January when he was sacked nine times in a wild card loss to the Los Angeles Rams. He said the Week 18 win against the 49ers felt like a playoff game because of everything on the line and the crowd noise at Levi’s Stadium.
The Seahawks will have home-field advantage in the rematch.
“Being able to use pace is going to be huge, and then having our 12 out there making noise when they’re on offense is crucial,” Darnold said. “So it’s going to be a great atmosphere and something we’re all looking forward to.”
This will be the first playoff game at Lumen Field with fans in the stands since January 2017. The Seahawks’ only other home playoff game since then came at the end of the 2020 COVID-19 season, when they lost in the wild-card round to the Rams in an empty stadium.
“We know Lumen is going to be great,” Darnold said. “It’s an important game. We’re not misrepresenting it at all. We understand the implications of the game. The playoffs, it’s great to play games like this, especially in January. But yeah, we’re treating this week like any other week, and we’re excited about it.”
Source | domain www.espn.com
