Should the Seattle Seahawks Trade Jalen Milroe? Evaluating the QB’s Future

The Seattle Seahawks are fresh off a Super Bowl win with Sam Darnold under center, which may have been a little awkward for third-round rookie Jalen Milroe, who was brought in to be the quarterback of the future for the franchise.

Milroe could still be that for the Seahawks, but his chances of reaching the starting lineup are far less now than it was a year ago when he first joined the team.

Milroe was inactive for most of his rookie season and with Darnold and Drew Lock ahead of him in the depth chart, it could be wise for the Seahawks to trade him.

The Case for Trading Jalen Milroe

Seattle Seahawks quarterback Jalen Milroe warms up prior to a game against the San Francisco 49ers. | Kevin Ng-Imagn Images

Milroe has three years left on his deal, which means by the end of Darnold's current contract, he will only have one year remaining. That's also contingent on the Seahawks not re-signing Darnold, which looks likely.

The Seahawks re-signed Lock to be Darnold's backup. Milroe will compete for second-string reps against him this offseason, but he is not the favorite in that position battle. For a player whose main weaknesses are anticipatory throwing and short-area accuracy, he doesn't get better in those areas by sitting on the sidelines.

On top of that, the Seahawks only have four picks in the 2026 NFL Draft, so trading a high-upside prospect like Milroe could recoup the mid-round capital lost in trades for veteran help. The Seahawks drafted Milroe in the third, so it's possible the Seahawks could get a fifth or sixth-round pick if they were to trade him during the draft.

The quarterback crop in this year's draft class isn't very deep. Indiana's Fernando Mendoza will be the No. 1 overall pick to the Las Vegas Raiders and Alabama's Ty Simpson should be QB2, going at some point late in the first or second round. After that, there's a pretty big jump between them and the rest of the class.

If Milroe came out of this year's class, it's possible that he could have been a top three quarterback, so other teams could explore the idea of trading for Milroe instead of drafting someone else.

The Case for Keeping Jalen Milroe

Seattle Seahawks quarterback Jalen Milroe warms up prior to the game against the Los Angeles Rams. | Jayne Kamin-Oncea-Imagn Images

General manager John Schneider has a history of drafting and holding onto developmental quarterbacks and head coach Mike Macdonald is bullish on Milroe's growth.

"It's the way things shook out. It was best for the team for him not to be active on game day and have a larger role, but plenty of ability to do so throughout the year, I was really excited about his development. I know he's going to work his tail off," Macdonald said of Milroe.

Milroe is still the highest-ceiling dual-threat in the building. His mobility and rocket arm provide more upside that a traditional pocket passer like Lock cannot replicate if the offense needs to change things up.

Milroe is also on an incredibly affordable rookie contract. In a league where backup quarterback salaries are exponentially growing, having a high-upside athlete on a rookie deal is a luxury.

Despite hardly playing in his rookie year, Milroe learned a lot behind the scenes. His number could be called at any moment, so the Seahawks might as well try to keep him.

Our Take

While the Seahawks should see what trade offers are out there for Milroe, it would be in their best interest to hold onto him for now.

Quarterback is possibly the last position the Seahawks will address in the draft, so Milroe won't be threatened by another signal-caller coming into the building. Patience is needed for his development and the Seahawks coaching staff is giving it.

The Seahawks are currently slated to pick in the first three rounds (No. 32, 64, and 96), but only have one more pick after that. Keeping Milroe effectively functions as having an "extra" draft pick who has already spent a year in the building, which comes with its fair share of pros with the only con really being that he has one less season on his contract.

If a trade were to happen, look for it to take place during the NFL Draft from April 23-25.

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