Lock officially starts at State Farm as Darnold ruled out for Week 2

GLENDALE - Sam Darnold will not play Sunday at State Farm Stadium. That is no longer a projection.

Seattle Seahawks coach Mike Macdonald made it official Wednesday: Darnold is ruled out for Week 2 against the Arizona Cardinals with a glute soft-tissue injury the club continues to describe as short-term and unique. Drew Lock will start. Jalen Milroe remains the backup.

Macdonald said the Seahawks do not plan to place Darnold on injured reserve and do not anticipate signing a third quarterback while he rehabs.

NBC Sports and Seahawks.com both carried the ruling. FOX 13 Seattle quoted Macdonald on Lock: "He'll get all the reps. He's our starter this week, and we'll operate accordingly." Macdonald added that Lock has known the assignment was coming and that Darnold is "killing it on his rehab" even though he cannot play this week.

What Lock brings into Arizona

Lock relieved Darnold after five plays in the season opener against New England and finished 16-of-22 for 187 yards and a touchdown in Seattle's 13-10 win, FOX 13 reported. He has made 28 career starts across Seattle, Denver and the New York Giants.

With the Seahawks specifically, he started twice in 2023 in place of Geno Smith - against Philadelphia and San Francisco - going 44-for-64 for 477 yards with three touchdowns and two interceptions.

This is a different ask than last week's mid-drive entrance. Lock will take the first-team practice snaps all week. Cooper Kupp, limited Wednesday with a back issue, told reporters that Lock already sits in on the same conversations Darnold hears, which shortens the install curve.

Milroe, whose regular-season work has mostly been gadget packages, will not get those starter reps. Macdonald was blunt: Milroe is "not going to get no reps" in the traditional starter allotment while Lock prepares.

Arizona's defense will see a quarterback who can push the ball and leave the pocket, but one who has not opened a game since 2024. That gap is the opening Jonathan Gannon's staff will try to widen.

Cardinals side of the rematch frame

Jacoby Brissett remains Arizona's starter after the Week 1 road win at the Chargers. Sunday becomes a veteran-backup-turned-starter on one sideline against a bridge starter who just validated an offseason rebuild on the other. The Cardinals do not need to invent pressure packages; they need to force Lock into early downs that look like the ones that produced turnovers in his prior Seattle starts.

Wednesday's Cardinals injury report still carries watch items that matter for how Arizona can chase that plan. Guard Isaac Seumalo did not practice with a shoulder injury. Tight end Trey McBride, safety Budda Baker and linebacker Josh Sweat were listed as did-not-participate for rest (McBride also carrying a back notation).

Those rest tags often clear by Sunday, but Seumalo's shoulder is a different category - if he is limited or out, the interior protection in front of Brissett changes the complementary math when Seattle's front loads the pocket.

Seattle's own report showed safety Ty Okada (hamstring) out of practice again, Nick Emmanwori limited as he works back from ankle and hip issues, and offensive linemen Anthony Bradford and Josh Jones limited with knees. Wide receiver Tory Horton returned to full participation after missing the opener with a hamstring. The Seahawks are not at full strength around Lock either.

Short-term injury, Week 2 consequences

Macdonald and the medical staff have stressed since Monday that Darnold's hip joint is fine and that the glute issue should not require the four-game minimum that comes with injured reserve. That framing keeps a Week 3 return at Washington in play without promising it.

For Arizona, the relevant window is 60 minutes on Sunday: Lock under center, Brissett opposite him, and a home crowd that just watched the Cardinals flip a Week 1 narrative on the road.

State Farm Stadium will get the quarterback matchup the injury report promised midweek. Lock has the reps. Brissett has the recent tape. The glute update on Darnold only decides who is missing - not who wins the afternoon.

Sources

seahawks.com

NBC Sports

fox13seattle.com