The Seattle Seahawks may not have to wait long for Sam Darnold to get back under center.
Darnold’s Week 1 injury had his status hanging in the balance, but the early read now points toward a quicker return than expected. The quarterback is dealing with a glute issue, and the initial hope was that he would only miss a few games. According to NFL Network’s Ian Rapoport, that timeline may hold - or even tighten up.
“My understanding is he is recovering faster than anyone had anticipated,” Rapoport reported. “There is actually a pretty good chance that Darnold is back at practice in some form or fashion this week coming.
“Now, could he play Week 3? Possible, little bit of a stretch, but possible. Week 4 seems like the more likely target for same Darnold.”
Darnold went down in the first quarter of Seattle’s Week 1 win over the New England Patriots, and the Seahawks managed to survive without him. Drew Lock stepped in and helped guide Seattle to a 13-10 victory.
That came after Darnold didn’t practice at all this week before being ruled out ahead of Sunday.
For now, Seattle’s immediate schedule gives the team some breathing room. The Seahawks have a solid shot to handle the rebuilding Arizona Cardinals in Week 2, though Arizona can’t be overlooked after beating the Los Angeles Chargers last week.
After that comes Washington, another game the Seahawks can navigate without Darnold if needed. But the margin for error gets smaller quickly after that, with the Chargers, San Francisco 49ers, Denver Broncos, Kansas City Chiefs and Chicago Bears all on deck.
A Week 3 return against the Commanders is still in play, but the likelier outcome is that Seattle gives Darnold one more week and aims to have him back in Week 4.
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