Seattle Seahawks fans spent last February celebrating a Super Bowl, and nobody around the Pacific Northwest had to think twice about Sam Darnold’s contract. This fall, with Darnold’s turnovers piling up and the Seahawks sitting at 3-3, Seattle is facing a real quarterback decision. This time, the calendar is on the team’s side.
ESPN’s Dan Graziano laid out the timeline Wednesday. Darnold is scheduled to make $35.5 million in 2027, and none of that money is guaranteed. A $10 million roster bonus vests on the fifth day of the league year, March 16, so Seattle has until then to decide whether he’s on next year’s team.
Why the Sam Darnold deadline moved back
Last year’s trigger came much sooner. Under the three-year, $100.5 million deal Darnold signed in March 2025, $17.5 million of his 2026 pay became guaranteed on the fifth day after the Super Bowl. That was an easy call, since he’d just won it five days earlier. Graziano noted this setup gives Seattle four more weeks to make the call than it had a year ago.
Darnold’s play is why those weeks matter. He has seven touchdown passes, seven interceptions and a 77.4 passer rating through five starts, down from 99.1 last season. Only Justin Herbert has thrown more interceptions. PFF has charged him with 10 turnover-worthy plays, and his 62.0 passing grade ranks 25th among 35 qualified quarterbacks. Seattle has also lost three games by three points or fewer.
Drew Lock gives Seattle a real option
Drew Lock has made the conversation louder. In two appearances, including a 31-7 win at Arizona, he’s completed 35 of 48 passes for 422 yards with four touchdown passes and no interceptions. ESPN’s Jeremy Fowler reported that Lock has impressed behind the scenes, too. Mike Macdonald isn’t budging yet. “I think we have a lot of faith in Sam,” Macdonald said after the overtime loss in Denver, per the New York Post, adding that Darnold is “definitely part of the solution, rather than the opposite.”
Seattle has a defense good enough to win right now, with Byron Murphy II dominating up front and Ernest Jones IV picking up a sack in Denver. Darnold has 11 games left to make March 16 an easy date again. If the turnovers keep coming, the Seahawks will have the extra time to go in a different direction.
More on the Seattle Seahawks
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- Seahawks Linked to Saquon Barkley as Seattle’s Run Game Ranks Second-Worst in EPA per Rush
- Seahawks Named a Fit for a Durable RB Who Has Missed Four Games in Five Years
- Mike Macdonald Is Right to Stick With Sam Darnold Over Drew Lock, Even With 7 Interceptions
