Is Sam Darnold playing today? Seahawks give latest Drew Lock injury update vs 49ers

Sam Darnold's status for the playoff game of Seahawks vs 49ers is uncertain due to an oblique injury. Backup Drew Lock is ready to play in his stead.

Published on: Jan 18, 2026, 24:14:24 IST

By Shirin Gupta

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Seattle Seahawks QB Sam Darnold is listed as questionable for today's NFC divisional playoff game against the San Francisco 49ers due to an oblique injury suffered in Thursday's practice.

Sam Darnold's status for the playoff game of Seahawks vs 49ers is uncertain due to an oblique injury. Backup Drew Lock is ready to play in his stead. ((AP Photo/Jed Jacobsohn and Mike Stewart) )

Head coach Mike Macdonald mentioned that the team remains “really optimistic” that Darnold might start. However, Macdonald is also ready for the chance that Darnold is not cleared for the game and said that Drew Lock is ready to play as the backup QB for the Saturday night play.

As per Adam Schefter, an ESPN NFL insider, “Backup QB Drew Lock took the reps the past two days and is ready if needed.”

Darnold's injury status and update

Darnold sustained a left oblique injury during practice on Thursday and took an early exit on the day.

He told reporters on Thursday, “[I] just kind of felt a little something in my oblique [and] just didn’t want to push it.” Due to his injury, Darnold took a limited role on Friday's walkthrough and was only seen making underhand throws.

Despite this, the team expects Darnold to start, according to Macdonald. Since the injury, Darnold has not thrown in practice. He told reporters that he thinks his chances of missing the game are "close to zero percent"

Macdonald also said that he is sure that Darnold will be able to play and said, “Yeah, he says he feels better…He’s confident that he’s going to be able to play. We feel the same way.”

Darnold threw for 4,048 yards during the regular season, finishing with 25 touchdown passes, 14 interceptions, and a 67.7 completion %. After his disastrous wild-card performance against the Los Angeles Rams as a member of the Minnesota Vikings the previous year, the game against the Niners would be his second postseason start and an opportunity for redemption.

Drew Lock is ready as a backup player

Macdonald said, “If he [Sam Daronld] doesn’t, or at some point he doesn’t, then [Drew Lock is] ready to go, and that’s why Drew’s here. He’s doing a great job.”

This season, Lock has only played five games. Lock is currently playing for Seattle for the second time. In 2023, he started two games for them, including a victory over the Philadelphia Eagles on "Monday Night Football." In 2024, Lock made five starts for the New York Giants.

ABOUT THE AUTHOR
Shirin Gupta
Shirin Gupta is a content producer with the Hindustan Times. She covers everything between politics, entertainment and sports at the US desk. Shirin got interested in political journalism during her time as a web editor at her college newspaper NCC News in Syracuse when she first started seeing the effects of national politics in life of her fellow colleagues. Shirin has worked on a wide range of fast-moving and developing stories locally when she was at NCC editing accessible reports for the audience. Her current role requires her to track real-time updates, verify information and present balanced coverage across diverse beats. Covering US politics from an international newsroom perspective has further deepened her understanding of how domestic decisions can have far-reaching global consequences. With a keen interest in international affairs, Shirin continues to build her expertise in geopolitics, policy shifts, and cross-border developments. She aims to learn and evolve her reporting in matters of geopolitics and international issues. Outside the newsroom Shirin writes about books and music for her personal blog. She is an avid consumer of pop culture and reveres literature.Read More

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