Seahawks find fault in more than Darnold’s 4 interceptions in close loss to the Rams

INGLEWOOD, Calif. (AP) — Sam Darnold threw four interceptions and still had the Seattle Seahawks in position to win on the last play of Sunday’s 21-19 loss to the Los Angeles Rams.

Linebacker Ernest Jones IV said anyone who tries to put the blame solely on the quarterback is sorely mistaken, including Darnold himself.

“Sam’s been balling, right? If we want to try to define Sam by this game, Sam’s had us in every (expletive) game. So for him to sit there and say, ‘Oh, that’s my fault.’ No, it’s not,” Jones said.

“Defensively, we could have made plays. There were opportunities where we could have got better stops. Yeah, I mean, like, it’s football, man. And he’s our quarterback, we got his back. And, if you got anything to say, quite frankly, (expletive) you.”

Darnold drove Seattle off its own 1 in the final 1:41 to give Jason Myers a 61-yard field-goal try as time expired that would won the game. When Myers’ kick came up short, it taught the upstart Seahawks (7-3) how slim the margin for success is at the top of the NFL.

“I think we’re a good team,” Jones said. “We turned the ball over four times, and we lost by two points.”

“We’re that close, and by our standards, offensively, played a very poor game,” wide receiver Cooper Kupp said.

There was plenty the offense could have done better, starting with Darnold having four interceptions in a game for the first time since he memorably said he was “seeing ghosts” in a 33-0 loss to the New England Patriots on Oct. 21, 2019.

In this instance, many of those mistakes came down to what Darnold admitted was an unwillingness to throw the ball away or take sacks. Arguably, the worst instance of that stubbornness came on Darnold’s fourth pick, which happened in Rams’ territory early in the fourth quarter.

Running out of time on third down while under duress from defensive tackles Poona Ford and Kobie Turner, Darnold threw an awkward jump pass straight to cornerback Darious Williams.

“I was just trying to get the ball out of my hands,” Darnold said. “Just a poor decision. There’s a lineman in the way. Didn’t see the DB, trying to make a jump pass, and just didn’t work out. I got to just dirt that one.”

Equally consequential was the Seahawks’ inability to score touchdowns in the red zone. They had one touchdown in four trips inside the 20, finally capitalizing on Kenneth Walker III’s 1-yard run with 2:23 remaining.

Seattle outgained the Rams 414 yards to 249, but Los Angeles successfully reached the end zone in each of its three goal-to-go opportunities.

“We had some good 10-plus play drives out there,” Darnold said. “We just couldn’t finish in the red zone. We got to be better in the red zone. It starts with me, getting the guys out there and executing at a high level. And then, yeah, just can’t turn the ball over. I think that’s the biggest thing. Biggest takeaway from today is just protecting the football.”

In spite of those struggles, Darnold and the offense continued to fight. He ended up 29 of 44 for 279 yards, giving Myers a shot to put the Seahawks atop the NFC West.

To Kupp, that reflects the continued growth and development of Darnold as a player and leader after his well documented struggles as the third overall pick in 2018.

“I mean, that’s not an easy thing to do,” Kupp said. “You just continue to battle, continue to be the same guy. Like I said before, he’s steady. Steady. And you can see just the trials he’s been through, the things he’s gone through, they’re not for no reason. There’s a purpose. He’s learned lessons, and knows that there’s waves, gonna be plays that you want back. But all you can do is keep coming back, keep firing.”

Darnold, who is challenging at the top of the NFC for the second straight season after his unexpected career revival with the Minnesota Vikings last year, understands that the quality of the defense backing him up means the Seahawks can contend for a Super Bowl.

But that is only if the offense does its part, which starts and ends with avoiding turnovers.

“I feel like our defense has been doing a great job all year,” Darnold said. “I got to not turn the ball over, simple as that. I got to do my job, protect the football, get the guys down the field, put the ball in the end zone, and I feel like we’ll always be in a position to win a football game if I just do that.”

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