INGLEWOOD—Sunday was clearly not Sam Darnold's best day as a Seahawk.

By any statistical measure, it was, in fact, his worst game since joining the Seahawks as a free agent last spring.

But after the Seahawks lost 21-19 to the Rams, in part due to Darnold's four interceptions, his teammates and his coach unequivocally had their quarterback's back. They've seen Darnold play at a high level all season long, and they don't expect this performance to define him as a player or leader.

"Man, Sam's been balling," said middle linebacker Ernest Jones IV. "If we want to try to define Sam by this game—man, Sam's had us in every (expletive) game. So for him to sit there and say, 'Oh, that's my fault,' no it's not. There were plays that defensively we could have made, there were opportunities where we could have got better stops. It's football, man. He's our quarterback, we've got his back, and if you've got anything to say, quite frankly, (expletive) you."

Said right tackle Abraham Lucas, "Listen, I will defend Sam as my teammate and my quarterback. Stats can say whatever they want, not everybody is going to have a perfect game all the time, sometimes things happen. He's a phenomenal quarterback, and it's impressive that he doesn't let mistakes get to him, I think people can take lessons from him. He's been balling, he's been lights out, and I'm excited to see what he can do moving forward."

Darnold, of course, was harder on himself than his teammates were when assessing his performance, which included four interceptions, two of which set up Rams touchdowns.

"A tough one today," Darnold said. "I felt like despite the turnovers, we moved the ball well we just couldn't finish in the red zone. I think that was a big thing today. I can't turn the ball over as much as I did today. I'll learn from it, watch the tape and grow from it. I have to give credit to the Rams. They're a really good defense, a really good team. I have to be better personally and I know we'll bounce back and learn and grow from this one."

Discussing what the Rams were able to do to create multiple turnovers, Darnold said, "They do a good job of disguising shell and all those things. I feel like a lot of defenses do the same thing. I feel like their pass rush, their linebackers, their safeties are all on the same page and playing really good football. They do it at a high level. They seem like really smart players. But again, those are self-inflicted wounds, turning the ball over like that. Sometimes it's better just to try to throw the ball away or even take a sack when nothing is there."

But for as rough as the day was for Darnold overall, he did show his resilience by bouncing back to lead one touchdown drive, then lead another drive that got the Seahawks from the 1-yard line to fringe field goal range for a 61-yard field goal attempt, which missed.

On those two final possessions, Darnold went 12 for 15 for 111 yards, including completing all six of his pass attempts on the touchdown drive, which Kenneth Walker III capped with a 1-yard touchdown run after a Cooper Kupp catch got Seattle to the goal line.

"Sam's like an ultimate competitor," Seahawks coach Mike Macdonald said. "So he's going to pissed, that's what you love about him, but he's going to bow up and keep rocking back… I'm not surprised. That's who Sam is. He's done it since Day 1 with us. He's an ultimate competitor and he's a great quarterback. He's our quarterback and we love him."

Said Kupp, "That's not an easy thing to do. He just continued to battle, just continued to be the same guy. He's just steady. You see the trials he's been through, the things that he's gone through, they weren't for no reason. There's ap purpose, he's learned lessons, he knows that there's waves and there's ups and there's going to be valleys. There's going to be plays you want back, but all you can do is keep coming back and keep firing. He did a phenomenal job of just continuing to be that steady presence for us, continuing to lead us. I know he's going to be pissed at some of the decisions and things like that, but man, to be able to come back and play the way he did there at the end of the game is really impressive."

Darnold's rough outing was a big factor in Sunday's loss, but it also doesn't undue everything he has done so far this season to help the Seahawks get to seven wins. It also doesn't change the Seahawks' opinion of their quarterback moving forward.

"Sam's going to keep going," said tight end AJ Barner, who had a team-high 10 catches for 70 yards. "That's the league, sometimes stuff like that happens, but we put ourselves in a position to win the game in the end. We all know Sammy D's a baller, so we'll be all right. Games like that happen."

Macdonald, when asked his message for his quarterback after the game, had a succinct endorsement for Darnold.

"Keep ripping it, man," Macdonald said. "We love you and we've got your back."