Capital punishment: Sam Darnold, Seahawks crush Commanders from start, 38-14
The Seahawks looked so fine.
Sam Darnold looked even finer.
And not just because they were in their best uniforms: the throwback royal blues and silver. Even the quarterback’s teammates on defense, not even in the game, were in awe.
“We were just watching from the sidelines in amazement,” Pro Bowl defensive end Leonard Williams said later.
They, the ransacked Washington Commanders and a national-television audience they still remember Darnold flaming out in consecutive Minnesota Vikings losses to end last season watched Seattle’s new quarterback for 2025 pitch a perfect first half Sunday night. Long and short, quickly and patiently, Darnold completed his first 17 passes. He threw for four touchdowns in the runaway first half alone. Two scores came 11 seconds apart in the decisive second quarter.
A ball he threw didn’t hit the ground until the third quarter. “No, I didn’t know that I hadn’t thrown an incompletion,” Darnold said. “It’s pretty cool.
“Someone at halftime said to me that I hadn’t thrown an incompletion. So I think he’s to blame for throwing an incompletion in the second half.”
Plus as he sensed Friday he’d get the chance to, rookie Tory Horton took full advantage of injuries and absences from veteran wide receivers Cooper Kupp, Jake Bobo and Dareke Young with two TD catches. Jaxon Smith-Njigba kept up his NFL leading-receiver ways with eight catches on nine targets for 129 yards. It was his fourth consecutive game with at least 100 yards receiving.
Williams had one of four sacks as coach Mike Macdonald’s defense dominated Jayden Daniels and the Commanders’ stuck offense to complete Seattle’s 38-14 wipe out of Washington Sunday night.
Darnold, a native of San Clemente in Southern California who then starred at USC and is now on his fifth team in eight NFL seasons was asked the last time he went 17 for 17 to begin a game. Any game.
“That’s a good question. I don’t know,” the 28-year-old quarterback said.
“I think I had a similar game in high school.”
After their sixth win in seven games, the Seahawks were raving about the former San Clemente High star who’s led them to this so far.
“He’s one hell of a quarterback,” Horton (four catches, 48 yards, the two scores) said.
“He’s on fire right now.”
The fifth-round pick this spring from Colorado State scored on Darnold’s passes of 4 and 25 yards to end Seattle’s first two offensive possessions. It completed a wholly winning week for Horton: He took home the trophy in the Seahawks’ rookie Halloween costume contest back at the team facility in Renton days earlier, thanks to this outfit from The Boondocks.
Then he went out and almost doubled his touchdowns for his season and career. He had three in seven games before Sunday night.
“That’s something we always harp on in the receiving room: You just always have to have prepared for when your number’s called,” Horton said.
“It’s unfortunate, but that’s the game we play. Players go down. You have to be prepared.”
Darnold was perfect with four touchdowns as the Seahawks romped to a 31-7 lead. He finished 21 of 24 passing for 330 yards and four touchdown passes. His one interception was on his lone poor throw, in the third quarter.
Darnold has thrown for 11 touchdowns in the last four games. This was his second four-TD day in four games. Darnold has 16 touchdowns against five interceptions this season.
“The way we came out with a sense of urgency on offense and defense, you felt it right from the get-go,” Darnold said.
The Seahawks were dominant Sunday night against a Washington team (3-6) that is a shell of its NFC-championship squad of last season.
Are they really this good? That is still to be determined. These Seahawks still haven’t beaten the 49ers nor the Rams, they two teams they must conquer to win the NFC West. They play at Los Angeles in two weeks.
The Seahawks are 6-2. They have won six of their last seven games. They remained in first place in the division by tiebreaker over the Rams (6-2), and over San Francisco (6-3). The 49ers beat the Seahawks in Seattle in week one.
The Seahawks improved to 11-1 on the road in two seasons under coach Mike Macdonald. Macdonald became the third coach in NFL history with 11 wins in his first 12 road games as a head coach. He joined George Seifert with the 1989-90 49ers and Sean McVay with the 2017-18 Rams.
On Sunday night, they disassembled a Washington team that went to the NFC title game last season and was desperate to end a losing streak and stay relevant for 2025.
Instead Seattle bludgeoned the Commanders to their fourth consecutive loss. “Sam’s execution right now,” Seahawks coach Mike Macdonald said, “he’s just ridiculous.
“Just a great win. Now it’s Arizona...”
Five plays to Seattle’s victory
Five plays in the first half, two sets of consecutive snaps, defined this domination.
Leading 7-0 in the second quarter, Seahawks middle linebacker Ernest Jones broke in free up the middle, pass rushing Washington quarterback Jayden Daniels. Daniels, the 2024 rookie sensation returning from missing a game with a hamstring injury, ran away — but only after Washington guard Chris Paul grabbed Jones’ facemask. Paul ripped the helmet off Jones’ head.
The 15-yard penalty for pulling the face mask negated Daniels’ run for a first down. On the next play, third and 17 instead, Daniels had cornerback Devon Witherspoon blitzing free at him. That forced Daniels to throw wide of his receiver to the Seahawks’ sideline. Seattle safety Ty Okada leaped, grabbed the pass and deftly got both feet down inbounds inside the sideline for the first interception of his NFL career.
Okada and Witherspoon credited veteran assistant coach Leslie Frazier, a former Super Bowl-winning defensive back with the 1985 Chicago Bears and former NFL head coach for Minnesota for drilling them on that play after practices.
“That’s Coach ‘Les’!” Witherspoon shouted over the locker room’s boomin’ music.
“Let ‘em know!”
Okada, the third-year former practice-squad player from Montana State, made his fourth consecutive start for injured Pro Bowl veteran Julian Love.
As teammates were still congratulating Okada on the sideline, Darnold threw for 17 more yards to Smith-Njigba. Six plays later, on third down, Darnold saw Horton break wide open into the right side of the Washington defense. That pass was perfect, too. The 25-yard catch and run put Seattle up 14-0.
On the ensuing kickoff, defensive tackle Brandon Pili on special teams punched the ball from Washington returner Jaylin Lane. Seattle’s Connor O’Toole recovered the fumble at the Commanders 26.
On the next snap, Darnold was precise again, this time on a throw to rookie tight end Elijah Arroyo, breaking free straight down the left slot to the goal line. The 26-yard touchdown pass made it 21-0 with two scores in 11 seconds.
Game (essentially) over. Yet the Seahawks were far from done.
Macdonald’s defense got another stop, thanks to a third open-field tackle by Witherspoon immediately following a catch short of the line to gain in the first half. Then Darnold completed his 14th consecutive pass, for a 22-yard touchdown. The Seahawks led 28-0.
The home fans booed. The only reason they didn’t leave: They wanted to see Washington 1980s and ‘90s legend Art Monk being honored at halftime.
After Washington finally scored in the final minute of the first half, Darnold completed two more long passes. That set up Jason Myers’ field goal on the final play of the first half.
Seattle led 31-7.
It was the second time in five games the Seahawks scored more than 30 points in a first half. They had a 38-6 lead at halftime against New Orleans in week three at Lumen Field, and went on to win 44-13.
Horton sparked that breakaway first half that day in September, too. He had a team-record punt return for a touchdown of 95 yards against the Saints.
2 more defensive starters injured
Sunday night was the first time since the first five plays of the season the Seahawks were whole in the secondary. Witherspoon returned from missing five games with a bruised knee ligament. Nick Emmanwori was back after three games away with a high-ankle sprain.
Emmanwori started at nickel inside. Witherspoon and Josh Jobe started outside at cornerback.
Cornerback Riq Woolen was the odd man out of the starting lineup. He came in four times in the first half in dime sets, as the sixth defensive back.
That was until Jobe got hurt. He got a concussion when Okada ran into him at the end of a tackle in the second quarter. Woolen replaced Jobe as the left cornerback for the rest of the game. Macdonald said after the game Jobe was in the league’s concussion protocol. His status for next weekend’s game against Arizona will be determined late this week.
Later in the second quarter, Jones tried to shake off pain for the next play before he took a knee. He got helped to the sideline and eventually the Seahawks’ locker room with medical personnel. He did not play in the second half because of a knee injury. Macdonald said it’s not a season-ending injury, though it’s possible Jones misses a game or two. It was too early for the team to know that.
In a positive sign he wasn’t severely injured, Jones watched the second half from the sideline wearing sweatpants and a team throwback hoodie. From the very edge of the sideline.
The defense’s leader was nearly leaping with Woolen to break up a Daniels pass on third down in the third quarter. Jones was hootin’ and hollerin’ and into the game more than any Seahawk as Seattle’s rout raged on. The Seahawks got reminded how good Witherspoon is in Macdonald’s defense. The coach had his two-time Pro Bowl cornerback blitzing. He had him in coverage inside, against tight end Zach Ertz. He had Witherspoon covering outside receivers, including Deebo Samuel.
Witherspoon finished with seven tackles, three denying first downs on third down to end Washington drives, and one hit on Daniels.
Daniels left the game with 7:29 remaining in the fourth quarter when Seattle linebacker Drake Thomas sacked him near the Seahawks goal line. Daniels’ left arm bent awkwardly under his as the quarterback went to the ground.
Commanders coach Dan Quinn, the former Seahawks Super Bowl-winning defensive coordinator more than a decade ago under Pete Carroll, said after the game Daniels has an elbow injury and will get more tests. Quinn said in “hindsight...you don’t want to think that way” about Daniels being in a 38-7 game in the fourth quarter risking injury.
“I’m bummed,” Quinn said.
So was Macdonald.
“Your heart goes out to him, man,” Macdonald said.
“It didn’t look good."
This story was originally published November 2, 2025 at 8:22 PM.
