Seahawks QB Sam Darnold's passing chart vs. Saints is a work of art

Sam Darnold had by far his best game with the Seattle Seahawks in the team's Week 3 win against the New Orleans Saints.

Darnold, who mostly played well in Week 2 after a quiet Week 1, is continuing to look more and more comfortable in Klint Kubiak's offense. He completed 14 of 18 passes for 218 yards and two touchdowns in Seattle's 44-13 blowout victory over the Saints.

It was also about the type of completions, as he effortlessly moved the Seahawks' offense and finished drives after the special teams unit set them up for success.

According to NFL Next Gen Stats, Darnold averaged 10.3 air yards per completion against New Orleans. He had a career-high 77.8% success rate, and only two of his completions came on throws behind the line of scrimmage.

Sam Darnold recorded a career-high 77.8% success rate in Week 3. He found success downfield, completing 6 of 8 passes traveling over 10 air yards for 146 yards and a touchdown. Darnold's average completion traveled 10.3 yards in the air.#NOvsSEA | #Seahawks pic.twitter.com/EEyCl9Hgo5
— Next Gen Stats (@NextGenStats) September 22, 2025

Darnold has completed 52 of his 74 passes on the season (70%) for 663 yards, four touchdowns and two interceptions. Only one of those picks, which both came in Week 2 against the Pittsburgh Steelers, was an outright bad throw. The other was on a deflected pass in the backfield that fell into the hands of a Steelers defender.

The run game hasn't been as efficient as the Seahawks hoped early on, which has forced Darnold to do more in the early season. It could take some time before that ground game picks up, so Seattle needs their $100 million quarterback to earn it some wins in the meantime. Against the Saints, especially, he has done exactly that.

Darnold and the Seahawks should be able to sling the ball against the Arizona Cardinals in Week 3. Arizona has allowed at least 300 passing yards in each of its last two games.

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