SamDarnold

News: 4 days agoDarnold completed 21 of 24 pass attempts for 330 yards, four touchdowns and one interception in Sunday's 38-14 rout of the Commanders.

Spin: Darnold used Seattle's bye week to regroup following a rough outing against Houston in Week 8, responding with a dominant four-score performance against Washington. It was the second time this season that the veteran starter registered a quartet of touchdown passes, also accomplishing the feat in a shootout against Baker Mayfield and the Buccaneers in Week 5. Outside of an occasional hiccup, Darnold has been posting elite numbers for fantasy managers in 2025, producing over 2,000 passing yards and 16 touchdowns across eight starts with his new club. Darnold should easily check in as a top-10 QB in fantasy for a soft matchup against Arizona next Sunday.

ESPN Fantasy Projection: Darnold signed with Seattle after enjoying a breakout 2024 campaign in Minnesota. Playing with the lead often (league-high 53% of plays) in Kevin O'Connell's QB-friendly scheme, Darnold finished top 10 among QBs in pass attempts, completions, pass yards, pass TDs, INTs, sacks and carries. He had multiple TD passes in 12 games and had a solid fantasy floor with 16-plus points in 12 games. Despite the big box score numbers, Darnold finished "only" 18th in QBR and isn't going to move the needle much with his legs (career high in rush yards is 222), so it's fair to expect a step back in a Klint Kubiak-led offense that swapped out DK Metcalf and Tyler Lockett for Cooper Kupp and Marquez Valdes-Scantling. Darnold is best valued as a fringe QB2 with minimal upside.