Seattle moved to acquire All-Pro guard Quenton Nelson in a trade last week, a shift that immediately reshuffled its interior line and prompted guard Grey Zabel to switch to the right side. General manager John Schneider said before kickoff on Seattle Sports 710-AM that the adjustments would not produce instant results and that the group would need time to settle.
The expected disruptions were on display in a 34-17 loss to the Chicago Bears, Seattle’s most lopsided defeat since December 2024. The loss dropped the defending Super Bowl champions to 4-4 and left them 2.5 games behind the San Francisco 49ers in the NFC West.
Quarterback Sam Darnold again struggled when facing pressure. He was under duress on 14 of 39 dropbacks and completed one of 11 throws for 13 yards with an interception while pressured, according to ESPN Research. Chicago sacked Darnold three times and registered six official quarterback hits after Seattle had no sacks allowed in the previous week’s win over Kansas City, ESPN Research noted.
The reconfigured offensive line featured backup Josh Jones at left tackle, while the Bears’ defensive front was bolstered by recent additions including All-Pro tackle Jeffery Simmons and the return of edge rusher Montez Sweat from suspension. Seattle’s backfield saw Zach Charbonnet make his season debut and Jadarian Price return from injured reserve, but the duo combined for 52 yards on 16 carries (3.25 yards per attempt).
Coach Mike Macdonald described the new alignments as having a learning curve and said mistakes should decrease week to week, speaking Tuesday on Seattle Sports 710-AM. He also called sacks a team statistic and urged caution against assuming all quarterback hits are solely the line’s fault.
Specific breakdowns showed varied causes: Charbonnet was beaten by a blitzing linebacker on Chicago’s third sack, while the first sack resulted from Simmons winning a quick matchup against Zabel, who was making his first start at right guard since his freshman college season. Darnold’s average time to throw rose from 2.45 seconds against Kansas City to 2.89 seconds against Chicago; he said he needs to be more decisive. He now has nine interceptions this season, tied for second-most in the NFL despite playing six full games, and one fourth-quarter pick was tipped by Austin Booker to James Lynch. Over the season, Darnold has been under pressure on 38.3% of his dropbacks (sixth-highest in the NFL); when pressured he is completing 31.3% of passes with two touchdowns and five interceptions and a Raw QBR of 3.9, according to ESPN.
