Despite the fact that the Seattle Seahawks handed him a $100 million deal earlier this offseason, there are still apparently some in Seattle media who think that Sam Darnold might not be the locked-in starter — no, really.
Seahawks head coach Mike Macdonald was doing an interview on Seattle Sports 710 AM on Tuesday and was asked about the possibility of Darnold not being the team's Week 1 starter.
It was obviously a ridiculous question considering the circumstances, and Macdonald made sure to point that out in his answer.
"No, you guys are crazy," Macdonald said. "I respect that you've got to ask it, but it's just a crazy question. It's just not going to happen. Sam's our starting quarterback. We love him. He's doing a tremendous job."
The question came because Darnold had struggled a bit during an open session of the team's OTAs this week. Darnold tossed a couple of picks in the practice, but he also had some touchdown throws to balance things out.
"God forbid you're the worst player of all time because you made one bad throw or one bad decision," the Seahawks head coach added. "That is not what we're trying to build. We want these guys to go prepare the right way and then when they go out on the practice field, go freaking let it rip, and then we'll go fix it. We've got time. It's June 3. They're going to get plenty of reps. We'll get those things fixed. Sam made a lot of great throws yesterday -- he was gashing us on third-and-goal to start the day out, too. So, yeah, it's kind of a crazy question."
Never put a lot of emphasis on OTAs practices in shorts and t-shirts like these hosts are clearly doing. It's silly, and any coach will tell you that the real evaluations happen when the pads come on at training camp.
Not to mention, Darnold is working with a completely new group of players in a new offense on a new team, and he's facing a very talented defense, so there are always going to be plenty of hiccups along the way
Darnold is going to start the season as the Seahawks' starter, plain and simple, and he's going to get ample opportunity to show he's the long-term solution. Drew Lock definitely isn't a threat to Darnold, and at the moment, neither is Jalen Milroe.