Steelers' Justin Fields vs. Sam Howell: Did Seahawks Make the Right Trade at Quarterback?
Roster building in the NFL is always a fluid process, particularly after free agency kicks off in mid-March, as teams such as the Seattle Seahawks constantly have to adapt and adjust plans based on an always unpredictable market.
In the case of Seattle, this year has been no different on multiple fronts, including at the quarterback position. While starter Geno Smith had his roster bonus turned into a signing bonus last month to secure his spot on the team in 2024, veteran backup Drew Lock departed on a one-year deal with the New York Giants, leaving the team with no other signal callers on the roster.
Though John Schneider's comments on an interview on Seattle Sports 710 on Thursday were quickly refuted by Lock, the Seahawks general manager indicated the the Giants "sold" the former second-round pick on an opportunity to compete for a starting job. After not being able to re-sign him as hoped, the organization quickly shifted focus towards finding a trade partner to acquire a replacement.
Though he led the NFL in interceptions, Sam Howell had plenty of positive moments in his first year as a starter in Washington, including throwing three touchdowns against Seattle on the road.
Hours before Schneider hit the airwaves, with other teams in the mix looking to strike a deal, Schneider orchestrated an intriguing trade with the Commanders to land former starter Sam Howell in a pick swap between the two teams. Seattle shipped a 2024 third-round pick and fifth-round pick to Washington in exchange for the third-year quarterback, a fourth-round pick, and a sixth-round pick, finding Lock's successor - and a potential heir to Smith - in no time.
Less than 24 hours later, another former starting quarterback in the league found a new home of his own, as the Steelers shipped a conditional 2024 sixth-round pick to the Bears for ex-Ohio State star Justin Fields. Set to back up Russell Wilson, who signed with Pittsburgh earlier this week, the fourth-year pro had been speculated as a potential target for the Seahawks for several weeks.
In the aftermath of those two separate deals for cast away starters, some fans may wonder why Seattle chose to deal for Howell, a 2022 fifth-round pick, rather than a dynamic dual-threat quarterback with first-round pedigree in Fields. But at the end of the day, after sweating it out with other teams trying to pry him away from Washington this week, Schneider got the player who checked off far more of the boxes he covets at the position, starting with his toughness
“Sam’s a football player, I think that’s the best way to describe it,” Schneider told Dave Wyman and Bob Stelton. "He’s a quarterback, but he’s really a football player, that’s what I love about him. He’s just a football player, and I keep going back to that but that’s a legit thing. This past year he threw it over 40 times in eight games, he threw it 50 times in two games. So it was rough sledding for him this past year with the Commanders.”
Despite dealing with difficult circumstances as a first-year starter in Washington behind a porous offensive line and without a semblance of a complementary run game, Howell nearly threw for 4,000 yards and tossed 21 touchdown passes in 17 starts. Showing off his top-tier arm talent, per Pro Football Focus, he finished 10th in the league in big time throws (30) and completed 22 such throws that traveled 20-plus yards through the air, tying for the ninth most in the NFL
Already holding Howell in high regard coming out of North Carolina, Schneider got to see him play at his very best when the Commanders nearly upset the Seahawks at Lumen Field last November. Putting his team on his shoulders, the 220-pound gunslinger hung tough completing 65 percent of his passes for 312 yards and three touchdowns, including a pair of fourth quarter scoring tosses that tied the game twice.
“The day we played here, that hit home how tough he was, how strong he was,” Schneider said. “Keeping his eyes downfield, finding the open receiver and, yeah, shoot, almost winning the game there at the end. We got great reviews on him and we loved him coming out of college. We’re happy to get him in the mix.”
In comparison, Fields wasn't near as effective overall as a passer in his third season as a starter in Chicago. Though he was somewhat shackled by his own poor supporting cast and questionable play calling, he only threw 16 touchdowns with 2,562 yards, finished 18th in big time throws, and completed 61.2 percent of his pass attempts, ranking 22nd out of 24 qualified quarterbacks in that category.
Since coming into the league in 2021, Fields has never thrown for more than 2,600 yards or 17 touchdowns in a season and he's barely completed 60 percent of his passes. Howell eclipsed all of those numbers in his first year as a starter while being hamstrung by a ridiculously pass-heavy scheme where he was asked to throw a league-high 612 times and exposed to constant punishment taking 65 sacks.
If there's an area where Fields would stand out against Howell, his dynamic playmaking ability as a runner has created major problems for NFL defenses and he has the burst of a running back, putting him in a rare class with Lamar Jackson. He rushed for over 1,000 yards in 2022 and while he didn't approach that number last year, he still tallied over 600 rushing yards and four touchdowns on the ground.
But Howell isn't exactly a slouch in terms of athleticism and skills with the ball in his hands either. In his final year with the Tar Heels collegiately, he toted the rock 183 times for 828 yards and 11 touchdowns, reinventing himself as a dual-threat weapon with several of his top receivers gone to the NFL. Last year, he rushed for 264 yards on only 15 carries, averaging 5.5 yards per carry and scoring five touchdowns.
With both quarterbacks being capable of improvising in the pocket and extending plays with their legs both as a passer and runner, Howell and Fields have some similarities in style. But in one season as a starter, Howell has shown far more consistency and proficiency as a passer in terms of accuracy, throwing with anticipation, and connecting on deep throws downfield than Fields has demonstrated at any point in his career thus far.
Putting the cherry on top in regard to which signal caller Schneider preferred, Howell has two years remaining on his rookie deal with cheap cap hits of less than $1.5 million per season. Aside from being cheaper with longer club control than Fields, who will be a free agent next year if his fifth-year option isn't picked up, he's also nearly two years younger and interestingly, he's younger than several of the top quarterbacks in this year's upcoming draft class.
“He has 18 starts in the league already, and he’s the same age as like [Jayden] Daniels from LSU and [South Carolina QB Spencer] Rattler and [UW Huskies QB Michael] Penix, and he’s a year younger than [Oregon QB] Bo Nix," Schneider said. "We were just really excited to be able to acquire him. We know he’s a serious dude and into it, he works his tail off."
For now, Schneider downplayed the possibility of Howell immediately competing against Smith for a starting job in Seattle, declaring him as the backup upon arrival. That's how it should be considering Smith has been a Pro Bowler each of the past two seasons and ranks among the top-six quarterbacks in most major categories during that span, including touchdowns, completion percentage, and game-winning drives.
In Pittsburgh, Fields will face a similar situation, as Wilson will roll into the offseason as the clear starter after the team jettisoned former first-round pick Kenny Pickett in a trade with Philadelphia one day earlier. It would likely take an injury for him to see any action next year and he will have to try to learn on the sidelines watching a veteran with a similar skill set manning the huddle.
However, with Smith and Wilson set to turn 34 and 36 years old during the season respectively, both the Seahawks and Steelers could be looking for new starters sooner rather than later. By making deals for Howell and Fields, each organization brought in an experienced starter under the age of 25 who could potentially be their next franchise quarterback in time, though that's far from a guarantee for either player.
With an opportunity to pursue a trade for both players, Schneider decided to roll the dice on Howell, favoring the more polished passer over the more explosive athlete with a potentially higher ceiling to groom behind Smith. Time will tell if he or Fields eventually become starters and flourish with their new teams, but both moves will be scrutinized over the next few years and the general managers who made the trades will be judged on how the two fliers pan out accordingly.
