Breaking Down the Seahawks Costly Interception Against the Bucs

If you were watching (or, in my case, were there in person), you probably had some choice words the moment Sam Darnold threw that interception and gave the Bucs the win.

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I watched it live in person, and it looked bad. Darnold obviously threw into double coverage late in the game while he was under pressure. Once got home, I rewatched the ESPN clip on X and broke down the play. Suddenly, what went wrong became much clearer and a lot more frustrating. Let's walk through it again together. I put the clip at the bottom of this article.

Seahawks Offensive Line Reacted Like a Blitz from the Other Side

The Bucs lined up in a 4-3, and at first glance, it looked like they might bring heat from the right side. Instead, the blitz came from the left, but the right guard sat in space and watched a backer who never blitzed. Instead, the left side got overwhelmed.

The running back did his job, picking up the innermost rusher, but there just weren’t enough bodies to go around. One defender came in untouched, spinning Darnold’s body counterclockwise as he threw. To make it worse, the ball clipped someone's helmet mid-flight and slightly changed its direction. The offensive line needs to be able to correctly identify the blitz and not leave someone just standing there.

The Decision Window Was Tight Because of Pressure

At about two seconds into the clip, Darnold had to decide who to throw to because a defender was almost hanging on to him. Cooper Kupp was coming across the middle and might have been open if he kept his in-route. Interestingly, it is exactly where the ball ended up.

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But Kupp cut upfield instead, hoping to get between the defender he just beat and the safety. Instead, the defender whom he had just beaten turned around in time to grab the pick.

Was Darnold throwing to Cooper Kupp, or was he trying to throw to Barnner, who was open to his right? Hard to tell the way he was being twisted as he let go of the ball.

Open Men, Missed Chances, Same Old Problem

The painful part? There were options, and it was only second down. Barner was wide open downfield to the right, and another receiver had daylight along the sideline. All the receivers, I think, were too far downfield for the situation.

Darnold also has to recognize the pressure and make a safer decision, like throwing the ball into the ground. That is something he has struggled with since Minnesota. Until he stops forcing throws under duress, this Seahawks offense will keep finding ways to lose the close ones.

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