With the Seattle Seahawks, there might not be a teammate who knows quarterback Sam Darnold better than veteran defensive lineman Leonard Williams.
Although their college tenures didn’t overlap, they each played at USC. Darnold and Williams then both started their NFL careers with the New York Jets.
Williams has personally seen Darnold had his highest points in football — 4-star college recruit and Super Bowl champion — and his lowest — losing his job and traded in New York.
Thursday night might be a low point of Darnold’s tenure with the Seahawks. The team has lost two in a row for the first time with Darnold behind center, and the veteran quarterback has thrown four interceptions in the past two games.
After the 17-14 loss Thursday night, though, Williams left little doubt that he still believes in his longtime friend.
“I have a personal relationship with Sam. I’ve been around him since college,” Williams told reporters Thursday night. “We’ve been on multiple teams together. Luckily, I have that relationship where I can approach him and talk about whatever.
“But I feel like, we all trust him, I feel like he trusts in himself. I feel like he will get out of it.”
Sam Darnold, Seahawks Struggling With Ball Security
There are potentially a few things not quite right at the moment with the Seahawks, at least if one compares them to last year’s juggernaut team. But the biggest issue, particularly the past two weeks, has been turnovers.
The Seahawks have turned the ball over seven times in their last two losses. Darnold had two more interceptions Thursday night, both of which came either late in the fourth quarter or overtime.
Seahawks’ Leonard Williams Speaks out on Sam Darnold After Broncos Loss