Seahawks Announce Sam Darnold Injury Development on Monday

Originally posted on Athlon Sports | By Paolo Songco | Last updated Jan 26, 2026 7:21 PM ET

Sam Darnold and the Seattle Seahawks are headed to the Super Bowl. The Seahawks clinched the NFC championship on Sunday night after defeating Matthew Stafford and the Los Angeles Rams, 31-27. Darnold and Co. have now punched their ticket to the big game, where they will face Drake Maye and the New England Patriots on Feb. 8.

Darnold was Seattle’s driving force against L.A. The two-time Pro Bowl quarterback logged 25-of-36 completed passes for 346 yards, three touchdowns and zero interceptions. Darnold stepped up to the plate in the biggest game of his career thus far, and he did all that despite playing through an injury.

Seattle Seahawks quarterback Sam Darnold (14) celebrates with the trophy on the podium after defeating the Los Angeles Rams in the 2026 NFC Championship Game. Kevin Ng-Imagn Images

Darnold sustained an oblique injury ahead of the Seahawks’ divisional round matchup against the San Francisco 49ers. The 28-year-old QB suffered the injury at practice, casting doubt on his status for the Niners game.

Darnold played through the injury against San Francisco, leading the Seahawks to a 41-6 win over their divisional rivals. The oblique injury carried over into build-up for the Rams game, with Darnold limited in practice ahead of the NFC championship.

The Seahawks QB did not have an injury designation for the Rams matchup, and he looked fine on the field in Sunday’s win.

On Monday, Seahawks head coach Mike Macdonald spoke to reporters to provide an update on Darnold’s oblique issue. According to Seahawks beat reporter Brady Henderson of ESPN, Macdonald acknowledged that Darnold will be sore after playing through the injury against the Rams. The Seahawks coach also noted that the same is the case for left tackle Charles Cross, who is nursing a foot injury.

"There's a couple other things we're going to work through, but nothing major, to our knowledge," Macdonald said.

The good news for Darnold and the Seahawks is that they have a couple of weeks to rest and recuperate ahead of Super Bowl 60. This should give Darnold ample time to recover. At this point, there is no concern surrounding his availability against the Patriots.

Super Bowl 60 will be played at Levi’s Stadium in San Francisco. Kickoff is scheduled for 6:30 p.m. and will be broadcast by NBC.

This article first appeared on Athlon Sports and was syndicated with permission.

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