I will admit that I was fully ready to write an article about Seattle having a Sam Darnold problem after losing a tight one to the San Francisco 49ers. This was especially true after Darnold took an untimely sack on 1st-and-Goal from the 1-yard line, which eventually led to a failed 4th-down conversion and no points on the first drive of the game. I thought it’d be a harbinger of doom that would set the scene for another Darnold near-playoff meltdown.
But it wasn’t.
Darnold, at least for now, shook off his demons and played the part of game manager, protecting the ball and making key plays when needed, to help the Seahawks secure the win and the #1 seed in the NFC. I’m still convinced that he won’t go up in a ball of flames in a few weeks, but I am convinced that it might not even matter if this defense keeps playing like this.
On the season, the 49ers are averaging 25.7 points per game. For the three games leading up to Saturday night’s matchup, they were averaging 42.3 points per game. They only scored three points on Saturday. They only had nine first downs the entire game.
It was a defensive masterclass by the M.O.B.
If this is the version of Seattle’s defense that shows up in January, the margin for error on offense suddenly gets a lot bigger. Only time will tell if that margin is enough to overcome Darnold’s unfortunate playoff reputation.
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