Seahawks Fall 33-31 to Commanders Despite Rare Efficiency on Both Sides
The short version
- Seattle fell to 2-1 with a 33-31 Week 3 loss at Washington, the Commanders' first win of the season.
- The defeat ended the Seahawks' 12-game winning streak dating to last season.
- Sam Darnold threw for 379 yards and four touchdowns but was intercepted twice in his first full game back from a Week 1 injury.
- Kain Medrano's 50-yard interception return for a touchdown with 3:57 left put Washington up 33-24.
- Seattle's next game is against the Los Angeles Chargers.
The defending Super Bowl champion Seahawks lost 33-31 at Washington in Week 3 despite 437 yards, a 28-17 first-down edge and top-percentile success rates on offense and defense.
The Seattle Seahawks dropped a 33-31 road decision to the Washington Commanders in Week 3, falling to 2-1 and absorbing their first defeat of the season. The defending Super Bowl champions had begun the year with wins in their first two games, and expectations of a repeat accompanied them. In the end, just two points separated the teams.
The defeat snapped a 12-game Seattle win streak that dated to last season and ran through the playoffs. It also handed the Commanders their first victory of the year, one secured against the league's reigning champion.
Sam Darnold played a full game for the first time this season after being hurt in Week 1. The Seattle quarterback connected on 31 of 45 passes for 379 yards, four touchdowns and two interceptions.
Washington, meanwhile, turned to backup Marcus Mariota with Jayden Daniels unavailable because of injury. Mariota made the most of the chance, completing 19 of 31 throws for 183 yards and three touchdowns, and he was not picked off.
The giveaway battle proved decisive. Seattle turned the ball over three times, and Washington did not commit a single turnover. Every other measure pointed to the Seahawks, who produced 437 total yards to Washington's 265 and won the first-down count 28-17.
According to SumerSports data shared by Shawn Syed, Seattle's offense ranked in the 86th percentile in success rate and its defense in the 89th. No team since 2022 had lost a game while rating above the 85th percentile in both categories, a distinction that now belongs to the Seahawks alone.
The game swung with Seattle trailing 27-24 late. Linebacker Kain Medrano intercepted a Darnold pass into the middle of the field for tight end AJ Barner and brought it back 50 yards for a score with 3:57 remaining. A penalty spoiled the extra point, and Washington's advantage stood at 33-24.
Darnold guided a rapid response that finished with him finding Cooper Kupp from seven yards out, cutting the gap to 33-31. That touchdown proved to be the game's final points, as Washington took the ensuing possession and ran off the remaining time without Seattle getting another chance with the ball.
After the final whistle, coach Mike Macdonald said, "I know our team, I know what they're made of, I know what we have. We're going to get back to work, we're going to get better and it's our job as coaches too to look at it operationally." He added, "It's not the result we want, but that's a byproduct of how we approach everything. How we travel, how we get ready, how we gameplan, so we'll look at everything, attack the heck out of it and move forward, but the guys will be great." Seattle now turns its attention to the Los Angeles Chargers, its next opponent.
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