Justin Fields getting traded to the Steelers yesterday is only the latest in a flurry of wild NFL roster movement over the last week. Several other quarterbacks also changed teams since the legal tampering period began and one of them is now playing for the Seahawks.
On Thursday afternoon Seattle pulled off a trade with Dan Quinn’s Commanders for their third-year quarterback Sam Howell. They also swapped picks with Washington, sending third and fifth-round picks over and getting fourth and sixth-round selections in return. According to PFF’s trade value draft chart, they essentially gave up a seventh-round pick in order to get Howell.
Getting a young, aggressive QB with upside is a good return for a seventh-round pick. However, there are some solid arguments against making such a move. For one thing, it likely precludes the team from picking a quarterback prospect in this year’s NFL draft. Aside from passing on a deep QB class, that would have given them control over a quarterback on a rookie contract for four years instead of just two.
Another point against the trade is that the Seahawks were already on the lower end of the league when it comes to total draft capital this year. Here’s their updated order of selections, per Tankathon.
- Round 1: No. 16 overall
- Round 3: No. 81 overall
- Round 4: No. 102 overall
- Round 4: No. 118 oerall
- Round 6: No. 179 overall
- Round 6: No. 192 overall
- Round 7: No. 235 overall
More and more it’s looking like trading down from that No. 16 spot is the right move for the first round. They also might consider sending away one of their high-value assets – but trading a piece like DK Metcalf at this point would feel like digging an even deeper hole rather than climbing out of it.
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