Darnold in Danger of Missing Week 10 as Seahawks Weigh Resting Their Quarterback

The Seattle Seahawks already knew they would be without Sam Darnold on Sunday. Now they may have to plan for longer without him.

Darnold, sidelined with a quad injury for Sunday's home game against the visiting Arizona Cardinals, is in danger of missing next week's game against the Las Vegas Raiders as well, according to ESPN's Adam Schefter, citing league sources. The report, which landed on Sunday morning, turns a one-week absence into a decision the Seahawks have to make about their whole November.

It is a call shaped by the calendar as much as by the injury. Darnold is considered week-to-week and will not be placed on injured reserve, head coach Mike Macdonald has said, but Seattle also know they have their bye the following week. By missing the next two games, Darnold could get the chance to rest for the next three weeks before the Seahawks play a big divisional Week 12 game in San Francisco against the 49ers. For a team sitting at 4-4, deadlocked with the Los Angeles Rams for second in the NFC West behind the 6-1 49ers, that is a tempting trade — two games now for a healthy quarterback when the stretch run begins.

The injury itself came in a miserable Monday night. Darnold cracked a rib on the second play of the loss to the Chicago Bears before suffering the quad injury late in the game. Macdonald clarified it is the quad, not the cracked rib, that is keeping Darnold out of Week 9 action. Through seven starts this season, Darnold has completed 60.2 percent of his passes for 1,478 yards with 10 touchdowns and nine interceptions — numbers that tell the story of a quarterback who has moved the ball but paid for it.

If Darnold cannot go, the job falls to Drew Lock, who is himself dealing with an elbow injury but is slated to start if available, with Jalen Milroe backing him up. It is not unfamiliar territory for Lock. He started in Weeks 2 and 3 after Darnold suffered a glute injury in the season opener, and most recently served as the emergency third quarterback against the Bears while Milroe backed up Darnold. As of Wednesday, Macdonald said Lock was able to throw, though his capacity would be determined during practice this week. Milroe, for his part, has yet to see game action this season, taking just three snaps across three contests during his rookie campaign.

The stakes on Sunday are real even with the bigger picture in mind. A win over the 3-5 Cardinals would lift the defending champions' playoff odds to 54 percent, according to NFL Next Gen Stats; a loss would drop them to 29 percent. The Seahawks do not currently have any other quarterbacks on the roster, and Macdonald did not rule out the possibility of adding another signal caller ahead of Sunday's game.

For now, Seattle waits on a quad and a rib, and on a decision that is really about December. Rest Darnold through the bye and he could return for the trip to San Francisco with three weeks of healing behind him. Rush him back for Las Vegas and risk losing him for longer. It is the kind of choice that defines a season — and the Seahawks have a week to make it.