We’ve been big Sam Darnold fans ever since he came to Seattle. But he clearly has lost his edge, his poise, his focus, his accuracy.

He has thrown seven interceptions in four full games, including two in each of Seattle’s three losses. That includes the 17-14 overtime disaster in Denver on Thursday.

Darnold is not the only thing wrong with the offense, but he is the biggest. When he costs the Seahawks wins and ruins great defensive performances, when it does not seem like he is going to correct it, it is time to make a change.

Mike Macdonald is a winner – a no-nonsense coach who fixes problems. This is a big problem that is not likely to fix itself, and the solution is to bench Darnold and let Drew Lock – who was very competent in his two games to start the season — lead the offense.

Darnold’s picks in Denver came late in the game. The Seattle defense heroically gave Darnold a second chance after the first one, and Darnold got the Hawks within field goal range to force overtime. But in OT, he ruined it with another pick, which enabled Denver to win with its own field goal.

Darnold took responsibility for the loss, but that means nothing toward fixing his play. If Macdonald respects his defense, which has played great all season and has to be tired of these wasted efforts, he needs to bench Darnold. That’s just how it is right now.

Some would argue Lock would not fare any better behind this offensive line, which has failed to stop the pressure on the quarterback. One person tweeted some hyperbole like, “Even God could not play behind this offensive line.”

It’s true the unit has really struggled the past three games against the fronts of Los Angeles, San Francisco and Denver. Darnold was hit 17 times (sacked five) by the Broncos’ stellar front.

But Darnold has added to the problems by not firing the ball in rhythm and/or by throwing unforced bad passes like the pick-six that cost Seattle the game at Washington. In 2025, Darnold made up for many of his 20 turnovers with big plays. But he has not made enough offsetting throws this year. He is hesitating and misfiring or just taking sacks. He is on pace for 26 interceptions — and the Hawks are trending toward eight or nine wins.

The Seahawks lost three games all of last season. They already have matched that, so they are pretty much guaranteed not to finish 14-3 again. Heck, at this point, the way Darnold is playing, a winning record could be in jeopardy.

If they keep Darnold in the lineup, the Hawks are very likely to lose to Kansas City – no matter how great their defense plays. And Chicago is after that. The Hawks could be 3-5 at the halfway point, with two games vs. the Rams and one vs. the 49ers among the final nine. That would be at least eight losses – if this offense continues to choke like it has.

There’s a long way to go, and there is time to get better. But is Darnold in a state of mind to stop turning the ball over? We thought he might shake it all off in this game in Denver. But he instead continued to play very poorly – we’re sure the All-22 film will show he missed seeing a bunch of open guys.

Some think it is reactionary to pull Darnold. That’s false. Macdonald has let Darnold try to play his way out of his funk, and there is no sign that he is going to. He just keeps giving away game after game.

What is the argument for keeping Darnold in the lineup? That the running game might improve with Zach Charbonnet and Jadarian Price returning over the next 2-3 weeks? That’s the only change coming. It’s not enough if the quarterback keeps making unforced errors like his back-to-back picks to start the games against the Chargers and 49ers.

Brian Fleury’s role in this mess is being debated as well. The fact is the first-year play caller has not helped his offense enough. He had early success with screen plays and has tried to rely on them – but at least half a dozen of them have gone nowhere over the past two games. He also gets caught in predictable patterns – run-run-pass, pass-pass-pass, etc. His personnel and motion use are both huge tells.

His calls are not dynamic enough. He needs to help his line by offering up some good misdirection plays and using motion more frequently and chaotically. Get AJ Barner more involved in the passing game, too. Create better route concepts that help uncover guys more often.

While we think benching Darnold would be Macdonald’s right call, it doesn’t seem like he would do it — yet. He did express dismay – once again – over the ball being in “jeopardy” and said they need to figure out how to prevent that. But he also supported the QB, saying “we love him.”

It is vaguely possible that Darnold and the Hawks can get their offense turned around on this mini-bye, ahead of a very dangerous game against the Chiefs. That is probably what Macdonald will hope for. He probably will look at the Chiefs’ bad pass rush and think this could be a get-well game for Darnold.

But then what if Darnold throws two more picks in another close loss, ruining another great defensive effort and sending Seattle to 3-4? Would Macdonald then go to Lock for the Chicago game on MNF in Week 8? Or would it take a fifth giveaway game from Darnold to remove him? How many is too many?

If he stays the starter and turns it around, we will be the first to say, “Hallelujah.” But we see no evidence that he is going to play any better than he has.

So, yeah, we would bench him now.