Seattle Seahawks quarterback Sam Darnold is ready to return from a glute injury and will start Sunday against the Washington Commanders.
Coach Mike Macdonald confirmed Friday that Darnold has been cleared after progressing from limited work Wednesday to full participation in each of the past two practices.
“Sam’s gonna play, and he’s ready to go,” Macdonald said. “He’s done a great job.”
Darnold was injured on Seattle’s opening possession of a 13-10 Week 1 victory over the New England Patriots. He completed 1 of 2 passes for 13 yards before leaving the game and later underwent testing that ruled out a more serious hip injury.
The 29-year-old acknowledged Thursday that the initial uncertainty left him concerned about both the remainder of his season and possible long-term effects.
Those fears eased considerably over the past two weeks.
“He looks great, so we’re rolling,” Macdonald said Friday. “It’s a medical miracle he’s back.”
Drew Lock handled the quarterback duties after Darnold went down and started last week’s 31-7 victory over the Arizona Cardinals, helping the defending Super Bowl champions improve to 2-0.
Darnold is coming off his first season with Seattle, when he passed for 4,048 yards, 25 touchdowns and 14 interceptions while starting all 17 games. The Seahawks won a franchise-record 14 regular-season games before defeating New England 29-13 in Super Bowl LX.
While Seattle gets its quarterback back, its secondary will be short-handed in Washington.
Starting safeties Julian Love and Ty Okada have both been ruled out. Love sustained a calf injury during practice Thursday, while Okada remains sidelined by a hamstring issue.