Sam Darnold expects to play in Saturday’s divisional round playoff game after the quarterback of the No. 1 seed Seattle Seahawks injured his oblique at practice Thursday.
Darnold is officially listed as questionable on the team’s injury report released about 48 hours before the game against the NFC West rival San Francisco 49ers.
Asked what percent of him believes he may miss the game, Darnold said, “Very low percentage. Probably closer to zero.”
Darnold hurt the left side of his oblique while throwing at practice. He tagged out early as a precaution and Seattle dubbed him a limited participant on the practice report.
“Just didn’t want to push it,” Darnold said. “Wasn’t the day to push it. So that was it. Just came inside, got some rehab, and I feel like I’ll be ready to go for Saturday.”
The Seahawks have Drew Lock and rookie Jalen Milroe behind Darnold on the depth chart.
Darnold, 28, went 14-3 as a starting quarterback for the second straight season, doing so for the Minnesota Vikings in 2024 before signing with Seattle in free agency to replace Geno Smith.
Darnold threw for 4,048 yards, 25 touchdowns and 14 interceptions and earned his second consecutive Pro Bowl nod while helping Seattle outlast San Francisco and the Los Angeles Rams in a highly competitive division race, allowing the Seahawks a first-round bye and home-field advantage against the Niners.
The Seahawks ruled out backup left tackle Josh Jones (knee), who missed practice all week, but no other player besides Jones and Darnold carry game designations into the weekend. No. 1 left tackle Charles Cross (hamstring, knee) is in line to play for the first time since Dec. 14.
