The Seattle Seahawks opened defense of their Super Bowl title with a 13-10 comeback win over the New England Patriots in Wednesday night's NFL Kickoff Game at Lumen Field, but the final score was nearly beside the point by the fourth quarter. Starting quarterback Sam Darnold, the engine of Seattle's title run a year ago, left in the first quarter with a hip injury, and it was backup Drew Lock who threw the go-ahead touchdown with 11:28 to play.
Darnold was sacked by Patriots defensive lineman Dre'Mont Jones on third-and-6 on Seattle's opening possession, the sixth offensive snap of the season, and limped off after completing 1 of 2 passes for 13 yards. He was examined in the sideline medical tent, initially listed as questionable, then ruled out before halftime. Lock, who re-signed with Seattle last year as Darnold's backup after previous stops with the Denver Broncos and New York Giants since entering the league as a second-round pick out of Missouri, took over from Seattle's second drive onward and finished 16 of 22 for 187 yards and a touchdown without an interception.
A back-and-forth night
New England led for most of the game. Quarterback Drake Maye found tight end Eli Raridon for a 2-yard touchdown in the second quarter, and kicker Andy Borregales added a 50-yard field goal early in the third for a 10-0 lead. Seattle's offense did not reach the end zone until Lock connected with Jaxon Smith-Njigba on a 45-yard touchdown early in the fourth quarter, tying the game at 10. Jason Myers, who made both of his field-goal attempts on the night, put the Seahawks ahead for good on a 26-yarder with 5:50 remaining, and the defense closed it out from there.
Smith-Njigba finished as the game's leading receiver with eight catches for 122 yards. Seattle out-gained New England 285 yards to 277 and won the turnover battle 3-0 — Maye threw three interceptions, one each to Nehemiah Pritchett, Julian Love and Josh Jobe — despite the Patriots holding the ball for nearly 34 minutes to Seattle's 25:43. Full statistics are available on ESPN's box score.
The matchup carried extra weight as a rematch of Super Bowl LX, where Darnold threw a touchdown pass as Seattle routed New England 29-13 in February to claim the franchise's second championship, capping his turnaround from journeyman to champion in his first season with the Seahawks. Wednesday's injury immediately put the health of the player most responsible for that turnaround at the center of a game Seattle had otherwise won, as detailed in Yahoo Sports' account of the opener.
An uncertain outlook
Seahawks head coach Mike Macdonald addressed the injury afterward, saying doctors had at least ruled out the worst-case outcome even as more testing was still to come.
"At this point we were able to rule out a fracture. There's some more tests to be done, so that's what I'm saying when it's positive."
Mike Macdonald, Seahawks head coach
Macdonald said Darnold underwent imaging at a hospital near Lumen Field during the game and that additional tests were needed before a full diagnosis could be reached. Asked directly whether Darnold might be available for Week 2, Macdonald said he did not yet know the extent of the injury, according to the team's own account of his postgame remarks published by the Seahawks' official site.
The Seahawks are scheduled to play at the Arizona Cardinals on September 20 in Week 2, with Lock the presumptive starter if Darnold cannot go. Seattle's next several opponents come from within a loaded NFC West, meaning any extended absence for Darnold would test the Seahawks' margin for error early in a title defense that many expected to hinge on his continued development. For a team built to repeat as champions, the opening-night script — a win overshadowed by uncertainty at the sport's most important position — was not the one Seattle wanted, even with the scoreboard reading in its favor.
