The Seattle Seahawks shook up their quarterback room this offseason, trading away steady veteran Geno Smith in favor of another unlikely comeback player.
But the team’s acquisition of Sam Darnold after his career-best season with the Minnesota Vikings has led to its own set of questions, including whether an offense that struggled to protect the mobile Smith last season can keep the more run-averse Darnold safe.
ESPN’s Brady Henderson noted that the Seahawks took a number of steps to better protect the quarterback in the coming season, but questioned whether the moves would be sufficient to keep Darnold off the turf.
Seahawks Bolster Offense
Darnold came to the Seahawks after a career-best season, leading the Vikings to a 14-3 record before the season came crashing to an end in dramatic fashion. The Vikings suffered a blowout loss to the Detroit Lions in the season finale to lose the division and then fell out of the playoffs in a first-round blowout at the hands of the Los Angeles Rams.
Darnold was sacked nine times in the playoff loss, leading to questions about whether his comeback season was just a flash in the pan.
As Henderson noted, the Seahawks’ offensive line “struggled last season to protect Geno Smith, whose 7.7% sack rate was a hair behind Darnold’s.” Despite the known deficiency, the Seahawks didn’t invest much in their offensive line this offseason.
“Still, Seattle made only one significant upgrade to its line — drafting left guard Grey Zabel with the 18th overall pick — leading to an oft-asked question about whether the team did enough up front this offseason to position Darnold for success,” Henderson wrote.
Henderson added that the Seahawks plan to keep Darnold safe in other ways, leaning on new offensive coordinator Klink Kubiak to improve the scheme and playcalling to better suit Darnold’s strengths.
Sam Darnold Vows to Improve
Darnold said it won’t all be on the team to keep him safe in the coming season, saying he knows he needs to improve his own habits.
“I’ll definitely be thinking about that,” Darnold said about Minnesota’s struggles to end the 2024 season, “keeping two hands on the ball in the pocket at all times. Just doing all the little fundamental things, but that’s a big one, is being able to just get the ball out on time.”
While the team made a big investment in Darnold, giving him a three-year contract for $100.5 million, he could also face an eventual challenge from rookie Jalen Milroe. The Seahawks picked the former Alabama quarterback in the third round of this year’s NFL draft, setting up a potential successor to Darnold.
While Milroe isn’t expected to challenge Darnold this season, he shared praise for the organization after being drafted and said he saw it as the perfect fit.
“This is definitely a dream come true,” Milroe said after being drafted, via the team website. “The best thing about it is I was gathered with family throughout this whole process. It’s definitely a unique journey for sure, not knowing where you’ll go, but it’s all about that right spot, and I know I’m in the right spot moving forward.”
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