Sam Darnold’s night ended after just the first drive, and the Seattle Seahawks‘ season opener suddenly looked a lot shakier. With Darnold sidelined by a hip injury and Drew Lock now the only healthy option under center, fans didn’t waste time connecting the dots to a newly retired quarterback sitting in a CBS studio.
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Russell Wilson hung up his cleats in June. By Wednesday night, “unretire” was trending anyway.
“What a catch by @CooperKupp 🙋🏼♂️,” Russell Wilson posted on X.
But the timing made people remember him fast. Sam Darnold went down just six plays into Seattle’s opener, and suddenly it was Wilson’s name trending, right as he casually tweeted.
The injury happened on a sack by Dre’Mont Jones, who drove Darnold to the turf with his right leg taking the worst of it. Darnold limped off, spent time in the medical tent, then limped straight to the locker room. He was officially ruled out before halftime.
That stings even more because Darnold hadn’t missed a single game last season, the one where he led Seattle to a franchise-record 14 wins and a title, throwing for 4,048 yards with 25 touchdowns. Losing him even temporarily is a gut punch for a team that just watched him have the best year of his career.
Drew Lock came in to replace him, and coach Mike Macdonald did his best to sound upbeat about it.
“We’ve got to pick him up. We’ve got faith in Drew,” he told NBC on the sideline.
Lock isn’t new to the team; he’s had two stints in Seattle with a season in New York in between, but he barely saw the field last year, completing just two passes for 15 yards across five games of mop-up duty.
That thin resume is exactly why fans aren’t feeling reassured. Instead, they’re doing what fans do best: demanding a reunion.
“Don’t make excuses for him. He has never been good enough. The team’s fascination with him has never made any sense. The only way to save the season is to sign Russell Wilson,” one fan wrote.
Another put it more dramatically.
“Russell Wilson back to the Seahawks. Goddamn, the script writers are good,” the fan wrote.
Barstool’s Jersey Jerry jumped in too, posting a throwback photo of Wilson in Seahawks gear with “One more Ride Russy!!! @Seahawks.”
Sleeper NFL kept it simple with a Batman GIF and the caption “Russell Wilson. Your city needs you.”
Even outside the fan chaos, broadcaster Jeff Eisenband made the case seriously.
“If Sam Darnold is going to miss extended time, the Seahawks’ first call should be to the best available free agent QB, Russell Wilson,” Eisenband posted on X.
The Seahawks haven’t said a word about any of it, but for one night, Wilson was the story anyway.