'Excellent Gamble' by Seahawks at QB Named Best NFL Transaction of the Offseason

The way the Seattle Seahawks' 2025 season played out should be a study in not putting too much stock into initial reactions to major moves around the NFL.

Back in March when the Seahawks traded Geno Smith to the Las Vegas Raiders and then signed Sam Darnold, it was considered a major blunder - with the vast majority of analysts giving Seattle's front office terrible grades for the QB swap.

Fast forward 10 months and it looks an awful lot like the best move that any NFL team made this past offseason at quarterback. Here's what ESPN analyst Field Yates had to say about the swap in his recent appearance on Seattle Sports radio.

Field Yates on Sam Darnold-Geno Smith swap

"I'd be hard pressed to find a better single transaction amongst players only this past offseason than Sam Darnold being signed while the team also ADDED a third round pick in the Geno Smith trade."

"An excellent gamble" by the #Seahawks, @FieldYates tells @WymanAndBob.

📺:… pic.twitter.com/2fWU3OROf5
— Seattle Sports (@SeattleSports) January 21, 2026

The third-round pick that Seattle got from Vegas in the deal eventually went towards making a long-term investment at quarterback. For the first time in decades, the Seahawks have a true developmental QB with Jalen Milroe.

Milroe clearly still needs time to grow his game at this level, but it does nothing to diminish the value of the trade. For now, what matters is that Seattle cut ties with their starting quarterback right before his level of play dropped off a cliff - similar to the decline we saw from Russell Wilson when the Seahawks traded him to the Denver Broncos.

Meanwhile, Sam Darnold was brilliant enough in the first half of the season to get some MVP buzz - and good enough in the second to earn another Pro Bowl trip. Comparing the numbers for these two QBs in the 2025 season tells a clear story.

Sam Darnold-Geno Smith 2025 numbers

2025 stats	Sam Darnold	Geno Smith
Passing yards	4,048	3,025
Completion rate	67.7%	67.4%
QB record	14-3	2-13
Touchdowns	25	19
Interceptions	14	17
Passer rating	99.1	84.7
Success rate	51.02%	41.91%
Total EPA	47.76	-74.70
QBR	56.0	33.3

To be fair, Darnold had a superior supporting cast - especially at offensive coordinator, where Smith was severely handicapped by Chip Kelly's playcalling before he was eventually fired.

That being said, in any context Darnold had a far superior season compared to Smith and the Seahawks deserve a ton of credit - both for seeing Darnold's breakout year in Minnesota as legitimate - and in seeing Smith's dropoff coming.

The lesson is the next time you read an analyst negging a big move by John Schneider, take it with a grain of salt.

Field Yates on Sam Darnold-Geno Smith swap

Sam Darnold-Geno Smith 2025 numbers

More Seahawks on SI stories