RENTON, Wash. — When Drew Lock was most recently named Seattle’s starting quarterback, there was little experience from his time with the Seahawks to draw upon.

Lock was thrust into action five plays into the season opener when Sam Darnold went down with a glute injury against the New England Patriots, then got the nod again for the Seahawks’ Week 2 win against the Arizona Cardinals. It was Lock’s third career start with the team, and now he’s in line to make his fourth on Sunday against the Cardinals in Seattle.

Darnold is out with a quad injury he suffered during Monday night’s loss to the Chicago Bears. Lock has been dealing with an injury to his throwing elbow, which coach Mike Macdonald said happened during a rainy practice a few weeks ago.

But Thursday, Lock was upbeat as usual and primed for the Seahawks quarterback’s weekly media obligations.

“I was prepared for this today. I was ready,” Lock said, inciting laughter. “I knew what I needed to do beforehand this morning to go upstairs and be really ready for practice with the limited time after this. I feel like I’ve got a better process now from the first time to this time.”

On the field, though, the Seahawks are hopeful Lock can repeat what he put on tape two months ago. Lock helped Seattle win its first two games of the season while throwing for 422 yards, four touchdowns and no interceptions before Darnold returned in Week 3.

Lock said his elbow is doing “a lot better” after he served as Seattle’s emergency quarterback the past two weeks, with third-stringer Jalen Milroe backing up Darnold.

Had both Darnold and Milroe been injured in one of those games, Lock said he would not have been able to play, though he continued to throw during individual periods over the past two weeks.

Ahead of Sunday, Lock expects to take every practice rep he can. Milroe is also expected to work in with the starters this week, Macdonald said Wednesday. Should Lock get the nod as planned, he’d once again seek to put his arm talent and quick decision-making on display in first-year offensive coordinator Brian Fleury’s system.

Seattle ranks No. 26 in expected points added per play on offense this season. But the unit has been most successful when the quarterback — whether Lock or Darnold — has quickly delivered passes rather than relied on deep, longer-developing plays. In a 20-3 win against the Kansas City Chiefs, for instance, Darnold completed 20 of 28 passes for 257 yards while peppering his receivers, especially in the first half.

Though Lock is capable of taking his fair share of deep shots downfield, he did a fine job against the Patriots and Cardinals of taking what the defense gave him.

“It was very similar and a constant flow of things back there,” right guard Grey Zabel said of Lock. “As offensive linemen, it’s truly great to have a guy that can slot in there, and you don’t notice a drop-off, or you don’t notice anything back there.

“He’s just the same guy, same human being. But it brings a lot of confidence and poise to everyone on offense that we got a guy like that.”

Seattle’s 4-4 record, including losses in three of the past four games, suggests the defending Super Bowl champions need some urgency to keep up in the NFC playoff picture. The Seahawks are in eighth place in the conference and trail the San Francisco 49ers by 2 1/2 games in the NFC West.

Many fans have directed their displeasure with Seattle’s start toward Fleury, who never called plays at any level before this season.

“It’s been challenging, for sure,” said Fleury, who replaced Klint Kubiak after he was hired as the Las Vegas Raiders’ head coach. “But I didn’t take the job thinking it was going to be easy. I knew the expectations were high. I knew that there was a good roster.”

Lock said he hasn’t noticed any panic within the team, but he and his teammates aren’t pleased with their place in the standings.

“It’s given us an opportunity to have a little adversity, fight through this, see what we’re made of, have a little chip on our shoulder, prove ourselves right,” Lock said. “Go out, and be the team that we say we are and think we are.”

On a personal level, Lock has another chance to prove his worth, too. He’s in a contract year and could command a new deal that gives him an opportunity to start again, should his strong play continue.

Lock, who turns 30 on Tuesday, is 7 1/2 years removed from the Denver Broncos making him the No. 42 pick in the 2019 NFL Draft. He lost his starting job in Denver entering the 2021 season, was traded to Seattle six months later and has now started for a total of three NFL teams, including in two stints with the Seahawks.

“I’m sitting here today, and I get to go be the starting quarterback this weekend for the Seattle Seahawks,” Lock said. “Eight years in, two kids, a wife — I don’t know. It’s just something (that) if you asked me 10 years ago if I’m going to be a starting quarterback for a team on a Sunday with two kids and a wife, it’s pretty amazing.

“And I’m blessed, to say the least.”

So, too, is Lock grateful that his arm is on the mend. We’ll see Sunday just how close to full health he is.

Regardless, the gunslinger is eager to help the reeling Seahawks in their time of need once again.

“I’m really excited,” Lock said. “Especially after a couple of weeks (of) not throwing too much and being able to get out in the huddle with the guys and throw the football, spin it around.”