Seattle Seahawks seeking to clean up errors in short week
SEATTLE, WASHINGTON - OCTOBER 11: Sam Darnold #14 of the Seattle Seahawks calls a play during the first quarter against the San Francisco 49ers at Lumen Field on October 11, 2026 in Seattle, Washington. (Olivia Vanni / Getty Images)
RENTON, Wash. - The 2026 Seattle Seahawks aren't quite the team they hope to be.
Of course, neither were the 2025 Seahawks after five weeks of the season, and they managed to go on and win Super Bowl LX last February anyway.
The team you are today isn't the same as the team you could be tomorrow. There's been a lot to like about how the Seahawks have played through the first five weeks of the season. But just enough has gone wrong to cost them victories in games that were there for the taking against the Washington Commanders and San Francisco 49ers.
"Really close," safety Julian Love said on Tuesday. "We go into each game confident (about) the process, the week, the reps at practice. Everybody’s doing their job. Everybody’s doing a good job. No one is cutting corners at all. On Sunday when it’s time to execute, we have to execute. We have to make our reads, we have to make our checks, we have to perform whatever play is out there for the time. Offense, defense, special teams, we’re close but not close enough."
Dig deeper:
The Seahawks do have problems. Their rushing attack has not been nearly consistent enough, and the group has fumbled five times and lost four over the last four games.
Seattle lost the turnover battle 3-0 in a 33-31 loss to the Commanders in Week 3, and 4-3 in Sunday's 32-29 loss to the 49ers. The Seahawks have turned the ball over seven times combined in the two losses, which served as a major reason for the defeats.
"If you want to grab anything positive out of it, it’s that most times you turn the ball over that many times, you’re not in a position to win the game at the end of it," wide receiver Cooper Kupp said. "We battled and found a way to be in that position. There is that as a positive, but it is about getting out of your way and putting the defense in tough positions. We just have to be better there."
Darnold has been intercepted five times in three games as well, excluding his five-play appearance in the season opener against New England.
"There needs to be a sense of urgency to get better and have ball security," Darnold said.
"For me personally, I’m going to try to be as decisive as I can be and go through my reads and trust what I see, trust my feet, all those things. But can’t have turnovers, got to protect the football in this league. And if you don’t, you’ll pay."
Meanwhile, Seattle's defense has been very good overall – but they've also really struggled in the red zone. The Seahawks rank 26th in the league in red zone defense, allowing touchdowns on 75 percent of possessions inside the 20. The unit does rank first in the NFL in total yards, passing yards and turnovers, and fifth in points per game.
"I don’t know if you guys caught the vibe after that Chargers game but it’s like, ‘Okay, you win that game.’ We were frustrated because things aren’t being played cleanly," Love said. "That goes into the process, that’s how we attack things like, ‘Okay, the final result is going to be the final result.’ We try to win games but, how did it look? What went into the game? There are so many corrections that we could be making. Guys have to play better situationally, individually. All the guys inside are fired up, ready to turn that over."
Roster Moves:
The Seahawks activated wide receiver Irvin Charles from injured reserve on Tuesday, and released running back Velus Jones Jr. to open a spot on the team's 53-man roster. Jones was re-signed to the practice squad later on Tuesday.
Charles was acquired in a trade with the New York Jets this offseason and has a reputation as a standout special teams player at gunner. The Seahawks acquired Charles in exchange for a conditional 2028 seventh-round draft pick. He did not play at all last year due to an ACL injury.
"He's a dominant gunner," general manager John Schneider said about Charles following roster moves at the end of training camp. "He came in today, and we talked, and I forgot how big he was. I gave him a hug and felt like I was at his waist. He's running 22 miles an hour, and he's just a monster special teams player. It's definitely worth waiting for."
Jones is a vested veteran and did not have to go through waivers, making him eligible to re-sign with the team's practice squad. Jones has appeared in all four games for Seattle, but only two snaps have been on offense. He's primarily contributed on special teams.
With the team picking up running back Robert Henry Jr. off the Commanders practice squad last week, the Seahawks have another third running back to turn to on their active roster. However, it wouldn't be a surprise if Jones is elevated from the practice squad to play in Denver.
"He’s coming along, doing a good job. On the team, he could be ready to play if we needed him," head coach Mike Macdonald said of Henry on Monday.
Injury Report:
The Source: Information in this story comes from FOX 13 Seattle reporting.
MORE SEAHAWKS NEWS FROM FOX 13 SEATTLE
How to watch Seattle Seahawks vs Denver Broncos in Week 6
Seattle Seahawks cost themselves against 49ers with turnovers
NFL suspends 49ers' Greenlaw after Seattle Seahawks headbutt
Seattle Seahawks commit 4 turnovers in 32-29 loss to 49ers
Leonard Williams, Ty Okada to play for Seattle Seahawks
To get the best local news, weather and sports in Seattle for free, sign up for the daily FOX Seattle Newsletter.
Download the free FOX LOCAL app for mobile in the Apple App Store or Google Play Store for live Seattle news, top stories, weather updates and more local and national news.