Oct 5, 2025; Seattle, Washington, USA; Seattle Seahawks quarterback Sam Darnold (14) throws downfield against the Tampa Bay Buccaneers during the first half at Lumen Field. Joe Nicholson-Imagn Images

ESPN predicts Seahawks will 'unleash' Sam Darnold against Jaguars

Originally posted on Seattle Seahawks on SI
By Tim Weaver | Last updated Oct 10, 2025 7:00 PM ET

This year the Seattle Seahawks actually followed through on their offseason vows to have a physical, run-first kind of offense. Only six teams around the league are running the ball more times per game and they're tied with the Buffalo Bills for the most run-heavy percentage of plays (50%).

While it's good to have an effective run game, at some point teams need to recognize what their personnel is best at and go with that rather than sticking to a stubborn philosophy. Right now that means letting Sam Darnold cook, as they did against the Tampa Bay Buccaneers last week.

Darnold responded with a magnificent game, including 341 yards, four touchdowns and a 135.4 passer rating. It would make sense to set Darnold loose again, and that's exactly what Seth Walder at ESPN is predicting for this Sunday's Jaguars matchup.

ESPN predicts Seahawks unleash Sam Darnold

"The Seahawks unleash QB Sam Darnold have him throw 40 pass attempts. Yes, even against a Jaguars defense that ranks third in EPA per dropback allowed. The Seahawks have been so much more efficient passing than running this season (.28 EPA per play to minus-0.07) and need to lean more on that part of their game."

Steven Bisig-Imagn Images

While we agree that the Seahawks should be letting Darnold run wild, there's a fine balance to maintain, here.

It's important to note that one reason why Darnold has been so successful is because of the way defenses are aligned against Seattle - ie, they're loading the box more often than not in order to stop the run - thus making Darnold's job easier.

So, the Seahawks do have to at least maintain the threat of their run game to keep their opponents honest, but as long as they're playing heavy there's no reason not to set Darnold loose on them.

Darnold couldn't quite close the deal last week, but that hard far more to do with an ineffective and shorthanded defense not doing its part than the pick Darnold threw at the end. The state of the defense is just one more reason for Klint Kubiak to let Darnold off the leash.

This article first appeared on Seattle Seahawks on SI and was syndicated with permission.

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