Will Sam Darnold Play? Seahawks QB Listed as Questionable

Posted on: January 15, 2026, 05:25h. 

Last updated on: January 15, 2026, 05:27h.

• Darnold pulls himself out of practice with oblique issue, still says he will start Saturday
• Backup Drew Lock takes snaps with starters in Seahawks practice today

A head-turning piece of news this afternoon, especially for those who have a bet down on the San Francisco-Seahawks Divisional Round game this Saturday night (8 p.m. EST) in Seattle: Seahawks quarterback Sam Darnold was listed as questionable for the game with an oblique injury.

Darnold told reporters today he felt a little something in his oblique at practice today.

I just didn’t want to push it,” he told reporters later. “That was it. Came inside, got some rehab. I feel like I will be ready to go for Saturday.”

No. 1 NFC Seed

Whoa, wild that Darnold was admitting that. The Tacoma News Tribune ran a video of Darnold using a Theragun (a handheld percussive therapy device for muscle recovery and temporary pain relief) on his side of the practice field. Offensive coordinator Klint Kubiak also said today that backup quarterback Drew Lock took some snaps in practice with the starters today.

“A lot of confidence in Drew, we brought him in for a reason,” Kubiak said later. “With any injury (Darnold’s), you want to know what the significance is.”

Any injury to Darnold, obviously, will tip the game in favour of the 49ers, a team that’s also going into the game dealing with significant injuries of its own (the loss of TE George Kittle, who suffered a tear to his right Achilles tendon, for one).

Backup QB Takes Reps

Darnold excelled for the Seahawks in his first season there – making his second Pro Bowl, throwing for 4,048 passing yards, 25 touchdowns, and a completion rate of 67.7%, with 14 interceptions. The Seahawks, by No. 1 in the NFC, was awarded a bye for the Wild Card Round and has two home games now to make the Super Bowl.

There were tons of questions going into the playoffs already with Darnold after going 14-3 as QB of the Minnesota Vikings last season then bottoming out in the Wild Card game against the L.A. Rams, taking nine sacks, as the Vikings backed out feebly.

Lock attempted just three passes this season, and hasn’t started since he was a member of the New York Giants in 2024.

Oblique Issue

So keep an eye on this news. We spoke with Ethan Useloff, Sports Trader for Fanatics Sportsbook, today, about the parity in the NFL this season, and how there never seems to be any surefire favourite when betting on a game. A potential injury like one to a dominant player like Darnold will make that even more challenging.

“I think this season in particular has been one that we’ve seen great parity within the NFL from week to week,” he said. “We have one of the Super Bowl favourites in the New England Patriots who lost Week 1 to the Vegas raiders who have the number one draft pick, which is an incredible showing of this parity.”

We interviewed Useloff earlier today before the Darnold news hit, and this is what he said about Saturday’s Seahawks-49ers game.

Parity the Big Story in the NFL

“The other game that I like, in terms of underdogs, the Niners, I know they’re decimated by injuries between Kittle, Ricky Pearsall didn’t play last week, they have just a laundry list of injuries,” he said. “But I think seven points in the playoffs is really hard to cover when you have a Kyle Shanahan coach team, and Robert Salah who has been, in my opinion, maybe the best defensive coordinator in the game this year.

“It’s hard to imagine the Niners losing by a ton of points in that game. I know it’s in Seattle, and it’s going to be a night game, and they have all these injuries, but seven points a lot in the playoffs, especially with the fight that that team has in the championship pedigree.”

Odds for the game, as of 6:20 p.m. EST: DraftKings has it 49ers +270 on the ML, Seahawks -340 (spread is 49ers +7, -110, and Seahawks -7, -110).