Seahawks Injury Report: Sam Darnold Set to Return, Safety Spot Short-Handed vs. Commanders

RENTON, Wash. - After missing one game with a glute injury and returning to practice this week, Sam Darnold will be back under center for the Seattle Seahawks when they hit the road for their first East coast trip of the 2026 season to face the Washington Commanders, but they will be without one of their biggest stars on defense.

Listed as a full participant on Thursday and Friday after being limited on Wednesday, Darnold successfully ramped up his activity as the week progressed without any setbacks, paving the way for the Seahawks to be comfortable with him returning to the lineup. Coach Mike Macdonald confirmed the Pro Bowl quarterback would suit up in Landover after a strong week.

“He’s been really positive and feels great, looks great. We’re rolling,” Macdonald said, jokingly adding with a smile, “It’s a medical miracle.”

Darnold originally suffered the injury just six plays into Seattle’s season opener, exiting with what the team feared may have been a significant hip injury after his right knee slammed into the turf on a sack by New England defensive end Dre’Mont Jones. He spent a brief amount of time in the blue injury tent before limping alongside trainers into the locker room, ultimately declared out for the rest of the game as he was transported to Harborview Medical Center for testing.

Fortunately, those tests showed no fracture and that Darnold’s hip joint remained intact, as the quarterback dodged a major bullet. Held out of practice last week, he wound up sitting out a Week 2 victory over Arizona with Drew Lock performing admirably as his replacement with three touchdown passes to Jaxon Smith-Njigba.

While Darnold will return quicker than initially expected, not all news proved to be positive on the injury front for the Seahawks. Popping up on the injury report on Thursday with a new calf strain after not even being listed with a designation after Wednesday’s session, veteran safety Julian Love missed a second straight day of practice on Friday and the team ruled him out for Sunday on the final injury report.

According to Macdonald, Love felt the calf “tighten up” during practice on Thursday, and he wasn’t able to give a timeline in regards to how long the stellar defender may be sidelined beyond Sunday. He won’t be the only safety out for the Seahawks either, as Ty Okada will miss a third straight game with a lingering hamstring injury that has not progressed enough yet for him to return to the field.

Seattle has dealt with numerous injuries at the safety position during the early stages of the new season, but losing Love presents the biggest blow to the secondary yet without Okada available to replace him, likely forcing AJ Finley into action as the third safety. Rodney Thomas II and Nick Emmanwori, who Macdonald reiterated would be ready for a significant increase in snaps after playing nine snaps in his debut last week following offseason ankle surgery, are the only two other safeties on the 53-man roster who are healthy at this time.

Macdonald said Finley had a “great” practice on Friday and the Seahawks have plenty of confidence in the former Ole Miss standout stepping in as the next man up on Sunday, referencing an interception he had against Darnold back in August at the team’s annual fan fest practice at Lumen Field.

“It’s one of those things. You’re really bummed about Julian obviously, he’s had such a great start to the season. A great player,” Macdonald said. “But when AJ got the pick in training camp, I’m thinking about the journey he’s been on over the past year and the way he’s gotten his body back and his movement… He’s sharp as a whip and a great communicator, so I’m excited for him to have the opportunity.”

On the positive side of the coin, the Seahawks will have running back Jadarian Price “ready to go” at full speed after being limited earlier in the practice week by a shoulder injury suffered late in last week’s win over the Cardinals. Both he and George Holani, who was limited in Wednesday’s practice with a banged up knee, did not receive designations on the final injury report.

Listed as the only questionable designation on Friday, veteran defensive tackle Brandon Pili will be a game time decision after going through concussion protocol and dealing with a sore neck this week. In the event he isn’t able to go, Mike Morris has been a healthy scratch for the first two games and likely would be active in his place, while rookies Deven Eastern and Uso Seumalo could be practice squad elevation candidates for Sunday as well.