I have a lot of affinity for Darnold...The ginger jesus would have kept me highly entertained. 

Too bad he's a Seahawk..

If we didnt have JJM? I could have been persuaded to sign him long-term and hope KOC can excorcise the remaining ghosts.

==================================

LANDOVER, Md. -- At halftime of the Seattle Seahawks' blowout win over the Washington Commanders on Sunday night at Northwest Stadium, Sam Darnold had four touchdown passes and zero incompletions, having connected on all 16 of his attempts.

He didn't know it until someone told him -- a no-no in football akin to talking about a no-hitter in baseball.

By the time Darnold missed for the first time, the Seahawks were well on their way to a win that improved their record to 6-2 -- and boosted their quarterback's MVP odds in the process.

"Not going to say who it was," Darnold said with a smile, refusing to give up the culprit.

Darnold finished 21-of-24 for 330 yards, four touchdowns and one interception before he was pulled in favor of Drew Lock with just over seven minutes left. That was good enough for a Total QBR of 97.8, the best in any game of his eight-year NFL career.

According to ESPN Research, there have been four instances of a player recording a QBR of 97 or higher in a game this season, and Darnold has three of them. The others are his performances against the Tampa Bay Buccaneers in Week 5 (97.4) and the New Orleans Saints in Week 3 (97.3). Darnold's three such games are tied with Tom Brady (2007), Tony Romo (2014) and Lamar Jackson (2019) for the most by a starting quarterback in a season since ESPN began tracking Total QBR in 2006.

"Sam's execution right now, he's just ridiculous," coach Mike Macdonald said. "All the things we've talked about that he's been doing, but decisive, making smart decisions, our receivers are doing a great job, I thought the protection was really good."

The Seahawks were short-handed at receiver, with Cooper Kupp, Jake Bobo and Dareke Young inactive. It didn't look like it, though, with Darnold throwing touchdown passes on each of Seattle's first four possessions. He connected twice with rookie Tory Horton -- who assumed Kupp's role of No. 2 receiver -- before hitting rookie tight end Elijah Arroyo and veteran receiver Cody White.

Darnold's 87.5% completion rate was the second highest in a game in Seahawks history (minimum 10 attempts), behind only Russel Wilson's 88.6% in a 2020. By completing his first 17 passes, Darnold tied the franchise record that Warren Moon set in 1998, which was also to begin the game.

"Believe me when I say it, I'm not surprised," Macdonald said of Darnold's completion streak. "We watch Sam every day and how he operates, and he's the same guy every day, which is what you love about him. We're chasing it. 

The guys are determined, and it's fun to watch. When the team comes together, that's the type of stuff you can do when you play the right way, you prepare the right way. Our coaches deserve a lot of credit. I thought [offensive coordinator Klint Kubiak] called a great game."

According to ESPN Research, Darnold began the day with 60-to-1 odds to win MVP, per ESPN BET. Those odds improved to 18-to-1 by the end of the game.

With their win, the Seahawks are 4-0 on the road this season and 11-1 since the start of last season.

ESPN

Or was that my imagination? They sure like that kid.

https://www.nytimes.com/athletic/6772999...en-nailor/

"The Vikings put the ball in J.J. McCarthy’s hands and trusted him to deliver the knockout blow to beat Detroit. That was the top takeaway from a game in which he completed only 14 passes.
What’s your play call on third-and-5 from your own 28-yard line while protecting a late 27-24 lead at Detroit with a quarterback making his third career start? The Lions had one timeout remaining with 1:41 on the game clock when Vikings coach Kevin O’Connell sent in the play to McCarthy. The result: a bold back-shoulder ball traveling 16 yards past the line of scrimmage to Jalen Nailor for a victory Minnesota badly needed after weeks of uncertainty surrounding the viability of the Vikings’ QB plan.

“This was not the boot pass where they pick someone off the line and he blocked someone for three seconds and released, was wide open, caught it and dove over the line to gain,” an exec from another team said. “This was a passing formation where they had to make a difficult throw, when the other team knows you are going to throw.”
The boldness of the play seemed remarkable under the circumstances, partly because McCarthy had completed only 13 passes all game and was playing for the first time in 49 days."

https://twitter.com/i/status/1985090720018108581

Yeeessssssssss.....

...his slight frame was his biggest red flag coming into the league. Was charmed last year, but not so much now. He's been injured this year, came back last night, now has what looks like a very serious elbow injury that will keep him out for the rest of the year. Washington's D is also horrible and old. What a change from last season for the Commanders. 

https://www.cbssports.com/nfl/news/seaha...ball/live/

"We saw a lot of things that he's capable of doing," Vikings coach Kevin O'Connell said. "And we saw some things that as he continues his ascension and his growth, he'll only get better and better at."

He (McCarthy) said afterward that he doesn't believe in a "clutch" trait and that he got plenty of help Sunday, but it was hard to ignore McCarthy stepping up in the fourth quarter once again -- this time in front of thousands of fans who once rooted for him at Michigan.

"I'm happy that we got the win, but I'm not proud, to be honest with you," McCarthy said. "There's a lot of meat on the bone, and I feel like I could have played a lot better. But coming into this environment and controlling my emotions, controlling my temperament going into it, I was proud of that."

Keep in mind this was his 3rd start in the NFL. He's 22. He played in Chicago, where he was born and raised, on MNF. Now just played in the state where he went to college and has a ton of attachment and emotion to. Won. Controlling his emotions indeed. Mentally you can see he's smart, has a control of the huddle and offense, knows the plays. Hell, he audibled out of a few for nice gains. But he's still learning. And he'll be less amped up as he gets more experience and won't miss a few easy throws I'm sure he'd love to have back on the run. His teammates love him. He may miss a few opportunities until he gets more reps, but in the 4th quarter when something is required, he's going to step up....not shrink up. He's tough as nails, doesn't mind taking a big hit after a pass. One game at a time, but this was a big win on the road against a big dog...and we got a dog at QB. Onward.

Yes he did some improvs, yes, there were some miscommunications with RBs, yes, it wasn't pretty.
But some obvious called QB keepers?  N I C E.

To see hope with my 22 year old QB...

Great throw and catch with Nailor to seal this one...

Brady sure luvs him some JJM. Hope Stickier got to enjoy this one. 

2-0 that's big