Former castoff QB Sam Darnold had one of the finest outings of his career on Sunday night, leading the Seattle Seahawks to an easy 38-14 win over the Washington Commanders. Darnold opened the game by completing his first 17 passes. By the time it was all over, Darnold threw for 330 yards, 4 TDs, and the Seahawks were back on top in the NFC West.
This performance by Darnold enhanced his MVP odds.
In the first half, Darnold completed 16-of-16 attempts for 282 yards and 4 TDs. Per ESPN, Darnold is just the fourth QB since 1991 to throw 4 TD before his first incompletion.
Ultimately, Darnold ended the game 21-of-24 for 330 yards, 4 TDs, and 1 INT. Seattle out-gained Washington 418-290.
The Seahawks entered this game short-handed at WR. Cooper Kupp (heel/hamstring), Jake Bobo (Achilles), and Dareke Young (quad) all missed the game due to injuries. On Saturday, the team activated Ricky White III and Cody White from the practice squad.
Cody White made an immediate impact, catching a 60-yard TD in the second quarter to put the Seahawks up 28-0. That was White's only catch.
Jaxon Smith-Njigba continued his elite season, catching 8-of-9 targets for a team-high 129 yards.
Tory Horton, who replaced Kupp as Seattle's No. 2 WR, caught 4 passes for 48 yards and a pair of TDs. This was a huge statement game for Horton, who could push Kupp for playing time in 2-wide sets.
TE Elijah Arroyo also got in on the scoring, catching 2 balls for 29 yards, including his first NFL TD.
Darnold is playing well enough to be a weekly starter in fantasy. Week 9 was his third top-10 weekly finish in his last four games. Darnold has now thrown 16 TDs against 5 INTs and is firmly in QB1 territory.
However, Seattle's upcoming schedule is something to monitor. Darnold faces the eighth-toughest remaining strength of schedule for a QB, which includes a pair of games against the Rams and a Week 14 trip to Atlanta to face a Falcons' secondary that allows the fourth-fewest fantasy points to QBs.
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