Darnold and Seahawks are looking to continue strong season against Cousins and struggling Falcons

Seattle (9-3) at Atlanta (4-8)

Sunday, 1 p.m. EST, Fox.

BetMGM NFL Odds: Seahawks by 7.

Against the spread: Seahawks 9-3; Falcons 5-6-1

Series record: Seahawks lead 13-9.

Last meeting: Seahawks beat Falcons 34-14 on Oct. 20, 2024, in Atlanta.

Last week: Seahawks beat Vikings 26-0; Falcons lost at New York Jets 27-24.

Seahawks offense: overall (9), rush (18), pass (9), scoring (3).

Seahawks defense: overall (6), rush (2), pass (11), scoring (3).

Falcons offense: overall (17), rush (9), pass (18), scoring (26).

Falcons defense: overall (15), rush (25), pass (8), scoring (17).

Turnover differential: Seahawks minus-4; Falcons plus-4.

Linebacker Ernest Jones IV is coming off a career game. He had a season-high 12 tackles and two interceptions, one of which he returned 85 yards for the first touchdown of his career, in the shutout of the Vikings. Jones, who suffered a knee injury on Nov. 2 and missed games on Nov. 9 and Nov. 23, appears to be fully healthy and back to being the anchor of Seattle’s defense.

The Falcons are leaning on running back Bijan Robinson. Robinson has responded by ranking second in the NFL with 1,589 scrimmage yards, trailing only Christian McCaffrey's 1,655. Robinson's 132.4 scrimmage yards per game leads the league. Robinson had 23 carries for 142 yards and a touchdown and five catches for 51 yards against the Jets. It was the second time in three games Robinson had 23 carries after he had as many as 20 carries in only one of the first nine games this season. Robinson has shown no sign of being drained by the workload. He averaged 6.2 yards per carry last week. Seattle's tough run defense could encourage the Falcons to create more opportunities to get him the ball in the open field as a receiver.

Seattle running back Kenneth Walker III and the Falcons’ run defense. Walker has run for at least 56 yards in each of his past four games, and five of his past six. Atlanta, meanwhile, has allowed 131.2 yards per game on the ground. Only six teams have allowed more rushing yards per game than the Falcons.

Seahawks: WR Tory Horton (shin) was placed on injured reserve two weeks ago. DT Jarran Reed (wrist, thumb), G Anthony Bradford (elbow) and WRs Cody White (abdomen) and Dareke Young (quadricep) were full participants during Wednesday’s practice. Walker (glute), TE A.J. Barner (knee, shoulder), S Julian Love (hamstring), DE Rylie Mills (knee) and S Ty Okada (oblique) were limited participants.

Falcons: WR Drake London has missed two straight games with a knee injury and did not practice on Wednesday. S DeMarcco Hellams (hamstring), DL Brandon Dorlus (groin) and DL David Onyemata (foot) also were held out Wednesday.

The Falcons have won two NFC divisional playoff home games against Seattle: 36-20 on Jan. 14, 2017 and 30-28 on Jan. 13, 2013. Seattle has won three of the past four games in the series. The visiting team has won the past four games. The Seahawks are 8-4 all time against the Falcons in Atlanta. Seattle earned a 30-13 home win in the first game between the teams on Nov. 7, 1976, It was the first of four straight wins by the Seahawks in the series.

The Seahawks have nine wins in their first 12 games for the first time since 2019. Seattle went 10-7 last season and hasn’t had a losing season since 2021 under Pete Carroll. ... The Seahawks are 5-3 against NFC foes this season, including 2-1 on the road... Seattle’s 26-0 shutout of Minnesota last week was its first since it beat Chicago 26-0 on Sept. 27, 2015. ... WR Jaxon Smith-Njigba, who leads the NFL in receiving yards this season, was held to a season-low two catches for 23 yards last week. His 1,336 yards are 194 more than George Pickens, the NFL’s second-leading receiver. ... Jones has a career-high five interceptions this season, tied for second most in the NFL. … The Seahawks have 40 sacks, good for fourth in the NFL, while the offense has allowed just 15. ... Seahawks K Jason Myers has made 15 of his past 16 field-goal attempts, with the lone miss from 61 yards during a Nov. 16 loss to the Rams. He is 28 for 33 overall this season. ... The Falcons' most recent home win came almost two months ago, 24-14 over Buffalo on Oct. 13. ... Falcons edge rushers James Pearce Jr. and Jalon Walker each have five sacks to lead NFL rookies. Dorlus, a second-year player, has six. ... S Xavier Watts is the only NFL rookie with three interceptions. ... Robinson has joined LaDainian Tomlinson as the only players with at least 55 receptions and 1,450 scrimmage yards in each of his first three seasons. ... TE Kyle Pitts set a season high with 82 receiving yards on seven catches last week. ... The Falcons were 10-6 in 2017 and have since had seven straight losing records. A loss Sunday would secure an eighth straight losing season. ... QB Kirk Cousins has passed for three TDs with one interception in two starts, with a 1-1 record, since Michael Penix Jr. was lost for the season to a knee injury.

Sam Darnold could be a questionable fantasy start. Darnold has had a fine first season with the Seahawks, but he’s been scuffling as of late. He has only two touchdowns with four interceptions over his past three starts. Darnold was sacked a season-high four times by the Vikings. The Falcons have the third-most sacks in the NFL with 41 and could be poised to add to that total.

AP NFL: https://apnews.com/hub/NFL

Seattle Seahawks wide receiver Jaxon Smith-Njigba (11) runs against Minnesota Vikings cornerback Isaiah Rodgers (2) during the second half of an NFL football game Sunday, Nov. 30, 2025, in Seattle. (AP Photo/Stephen Brashear)

Seattle Seahawks linebacker Ernest Jones IV (13) reacts after tackling Minnesota Vikings running back Zavier Scott (36) during the second half of an NFL football game, Sunday, Nov. 30, 2025, in Seattle. (AP Photo/Lindsey Wasson)

Atlanta Falcons quarterback Kirk Cousins (18) passes against the New York Jets during the first half of an NFL football game, Sunday, Nov. 30, 2025, in East Rutherford, N.J. (AP Photo/Adam Hunger)

Seattle Seahawks quarterback Sam Darnold (14) passes against the Minnesota Vikings during the second half of an NFL football game, Sunday, Nov. 30, 2025, in Seattle. (AP Photo/Lindsey Wasson)

WASHINGTON (AP) — The FBI on Thursday arrested a man accused of placing two pipe bombs outside the headquarters of the Republican and Democratic national parties in Washington on the eve of the U.S. Capitol attack, an abrupt breakthrough in an investigation that for years flummoxed law enforcement and spawned conspiracy theories about Jan. 6, 2021.

The arrest marks the first time investigators have publicly identified a suspect in an act that has been an enduring mystery for nearly five years in the shadow of the violent Capitol insurrection.

The suspect was identified as Brian J. Cole Jr., 30, of Woodbridge, Virginia, but key questions remain unanswered after his arrest on explosives charges, including a possible motive and what connection if any the act had to the assault on the Capitol the following day by supporters of President Donald Trump.

Law enforcement officials reviewed credit card purchases of pipe bomb components, cellphone tower data and a license plate reader to zero in on Cole, according to an FBI affidavit filed in the case. The FBI and Justice Department declined to elaborate on what led them to the suspect, but characterized his arrest as the result of a reinvigorated investigation during the Trump administration and credited a fresh analysis of already-collected evidence and data.

“Let me be clear: There was no new tip. There was no new witness. Just good, diligent police work and prosecutorial work,” Attorney General Pam Bondi said at a news conference.

Calls to relatives of Cole listed in public records were not immediately returned Thursday. Hours after Cole was taken into custody, unmarked law enforcement vehicles lined the cul-de-sac where Cole’s home is while FBI agents helped shoo away onlookers. Authorities were seen entering the house and examining the trunk of a car nearby.

The pipe bombs were placed on the evening of Jan. 5, 2021, near the offices of the Democratic and Republican national committees. Nobody was hurt before the bombs were rendered safe, but the FBI has said both devices could have been lethal.

In the years since, investigators have sought the public’s help in identifying a shadowy subject seen on surveillance camera even as they struggled to determine answers to basic questions, including the person’s gender and motive and whether the act had a clear connection to the riot at the Capitol a day later, when supporters of Trump stormed the building in a bid to halt the certification of the Republican's 2020 election loss to Democrat Joe Biden.

Seeking a breakthrough, the FBI last January publicized additional information about the investigation, including an estimate that the suspect was about 5 feet, 7 inches tall, as well as previously unreleased video of the suspect placing one of the bombs.

The bureau had for years struggled to pinpoint a suspect despite hundreds of tips, a review of tens of thousands of video files and a significant number of interviews.

In the absence of harder evidence, Republican lawmakers and right-wing media outlets promoted conspiracy theories about the pipe bombs. House Republicans also criticized security lapses, questioning how law enforcement failed to detect the bombs for 17 hours.

One particularly vocal commentator was Dan Bongino, the current FBI deputy director who, before being tapped for the job this year, was a popular conservative podcaster. He floated the possibility last year that the act was an “inside job” and that the truth was being shielded behind a “massive cover-up.”

But since joining the bureau, he and Director Kash Patel have described the investigation as a top priority for the FBI. In a long Nov. 13 post on X, Bongino wrote that the FBI had brought in new personnel to examine the case and “dramatically increased investigative resources” along with the public reward for information “to utilize crowd-sourcing leads.”

"You’re not going to walk into our capital city, put down two explosive devices and walk off into the sunset,” Bongino said at Thursday's news conference.

The reinvigorated investigative focus on the pipe bombs came even as the Trump administration has been engaged in a much broader effort to rewrite the history of the events of Jan. 6, including through Trump’s pardons on his first day back in office of the rioters who stormed the Capitol — even those who violently attacked police with poles and other makeshift weapons.

Though Patel said the FBI in the prior administration had “refused and failed” to sift through each piece of data in the case, agents for years had conducted a sprawling investigation.

Surveillance video taken the night before the riot showed the suspect spending close to an hour moving through the surrounding blocks, pausing on a park bench, cutting through an alley and stopping again as a dog walker passed.

Agents paired their video review with a broad sweep of digital records. They gathered cell tower data showing which phones were active in the neighborhood at the time and issued subpoenas to several tech companies, including Google, for location information. Investigators also analyzed credit card transactions from hobby shops and major retailers to identify customers who had purchased components resembling those used in the two explosive devices

The FBI affidavit filed in connection with the arrest lays out a series of evidentiary clues that investigators pieced together to arrive at Cole, who lives with his mother and other family members in a five-bedroom house on a quiet cul-de-sac in Woodbridge, Virginia, about 30 miles south of the Capitol building.

Using information from his bank account and credit cards, authorities discovered he purchased materials in 2019 and 2020 consistent with those used to make the pipe bombs, according to court papers. That included galvanized pipes and white kitchen-style timers, according to the affidavit. The purchases continued even after the devices were placed.

Authorities also obtained records showing Cole’s cellphone was near the RNC and DNC on the day the pipe bombs were placed, the affidavit says.

In addition, the FBI says, Cole's Nissan Sentra was captured driving past a license plate reader on the evening of Jan. 5, 2021, less than a half-mile from where the person who placed the devices was first spotted on foot around 7:34 p.m. that night.

Associated Press reporters Michael Balsamo, Michael Kunzelman, Michael Biesecker, Brian Witte, Jim Mustian and R.J. Rico contributed to this report.

Attorney General Pam Bondi speaks about the recent arrest in the pipe bombs on the eve of the Jan. 6, 2021, riot at the U.S. Capitol, during a news conference at the Department of Justice, Thursday, Dec. 4, 2025, in Washington. (AP Photo/Alex Brandon)

Prince William County Police block the street near the house where the FBI made an arrest, in Woodbridge, Va., Thursday, Dec. 4, 2025. (AP Photo/Steve Helber)

Prince William County Police block the street near the house where the FBI made an arrest, in Woodbridge, Va., Thursday, Dec. 4, 2025, in a nearly five-year old investigation into who placed pipe bombs in Washington before the Jan. 6, 2021 riot at the US Capitol. (AP Photo/Cliff Owen)

An FBI agent stands near the house where the FBI made an arrest, in Woodbridge, Va., Thursday, Dec. 4, 2025, in a nearly five-year old investigation into who placed pipe bombs in Washington before the Jan. 6, 2021 riot at the US Capitol. (AP Photo/Cliff Owen)

FILE - Attorney General Merrick Garland speaks at the Department of Justice in Washington, Jan. 5, 2022, in advance of the one year anniversary of the attack on the U.S. Capitol. (AP Photo/Carolyn Kaster, Pool, File)

FILE - Members of law enforcement are pictured outside Democratic National Committee headquarters, Sept. 11, 2025, in Washington. (AP Photo/Mark Schiefelbein, File)

FILE - Images from an FBI poster seeking a suspect who allegedly placed pipe bombs in Washington on Jan. 6, 2021. (FBI via AP, File)

FILE - This image shows part of a "Seeking Information" notice released by the Federal Bureau of Investigation regarding pipe bombs planted outside offices of the Democratic and Republican national committees in Washington on Jan. 5, 2021, on the eve of the attack on the Capitol. (FBI via AP, File)