For the purpose of this piece, I’m going to assume Kansas City doesn’t allow Trey Smith to reach the open market. If they do, the Seahawks should find a way to pursue him aggressively. About 20 teams, if not more, will have a similar thought process though.
There are two other names that I think are realistic…
Drew Dalman (C, Atlanta)
The two coaches who’ve had second interviews to be the offensive coordinator both come from the Shanahan/McVay tree. Although Sean McVay has adjusted his blocking scheme and gone ‘big’ on the offensive line, he’s struggled to find a center who fits what they want to do.
If the Lions win on Saturday it’s very likely the Seahawks won’t wait on Hank Fraley and will pick from the available candidates in order to name a coordinator quickly. If it’s Klint Kubiak or Grant Udinski, they might lean more towards the O-line personnel used by San Francisco and Minnesota.
Dalman would be a good fit at center for both teams. He’s 6-3 and 305lbs. He ran a superb 4.51 short shuttle at his pro-day, while delivering impressive explosive testing numbers (33-inch vertical, 9-1 broad jump). He’s translated these traits into a strong NFL career. He received a 78.8 PFF grade for the 2024 season (#4 among centers) and his run blocking grade was a 79.8 (#5 among centers). The year prior, he had a 90.0 run-blocking grade (82.3 overall).
The Seahawks have been crying out for consistency at center. They change starters every year. Another band-aid or low-level competition for Olu Oluwatimi won’t cut the mustard. They need to get someone in the building who can start for a few years. They can’t keep chopping and changing up front.
The draft is thin at the position. Jake Majors is superb and could be the answer but he’ll go early. Jared Wilson is athletic and has promise. Seth McLaughlin would’ve been a brilliant pick but he picked up an achilles injury towards the end of the season. You can’t bank on a player being available who can start quickly.
Ryan Kelly could be a short-term fix but he’s nearing the end. Bradley Bozeman can do a job for a year or two but no more. I like Josh Myers in Green Bay and don’t think we’ve seen the best of him. However, Dalman would be a good scheme fit, he’s only 26-years-old, he’s a quality run-blocker and he’d be worth investing in.
Creed Humphrey re-set the center market with an $18m a year deal. The next highest paid player is Frank Ragnow on $13.5m. You might be able to get him in the Ragnow range. If he plays as well as he has in Atlanta, it’d be worth it. A first-year cap-hit of around $8-10m would be manageable.
Sam Darnold (QB, Minnesota)
The more I think about it, the more I think the Seahawks might make a move here. There’s been a shift among those ‘in the know’ which has put a question mark over Geno Smith’s future. If he really is looking for a commitment from the team — meaning a big salary and term — it might lead to a divorce.
It’ll come down to Smith’s willingness to compromise. How prepared, in his age 35 season, is he to go ‘year to year’? How prepared is he to give the Seahawks some relief in terms of cap space?
There’s also the possibility of his former Head Coach, Pete Carroll, getting the Raiders job. Adam Schefter poured cold water on the idea Ben Johnson was destined for Las Vegas yesterday. Could Carroll be a Plan B? If so, he’ll need a quarterback in Vegas. He was a big fan of Smith, so would he pursue him?
It very much felt like they dangled Smith as a trade-chip a year ago, with Schefter noting his contract ‘provided value to the Seahawks, or any other team that wanted to reach out to see if he was available via trade’. Perhaps he’ll have a market this time?
The Seahawks can afford to go to the combine and assess the lay of the land. That’ll be the point to get around the table with Smith’s representatives and see what’s going to happen. They’ll know, by that point, what Darnold’s market is. They’ll know if there’s a trade market for Smith.
A lot of fans won’t like it and will say Darnold is no better than Smith. I tend to agree. I think there’s a similar level of ability there. Here’s the thing though — Darnold’s seven years younger. For a team with no obvious pathway to find a future at the position in the draft, this would be a shot to try and find something a bit more long term. If John Schneider doesn’t see Smith as anything more than a one or two year solution, it’s not unrealistic he’ll pivot to someone younger.
We’ve noted in the past that Schneider attended Darnold’s pro-day in 2018, just as he attended Josh Allen’s. That hasn’t been mentioned much over the years, presumably because Darnold’s career until 2024 was considered a flop. Don’t be surprised if that nugget crops up between now and March.
The two current finalists we know about for the Seahawks’ offensive coordinator job have both worked with Darnold in the last two seasons. There’d be familiarity.
There’s also the cost factor to consider. If he’s available for a contract similar to Baker Mayfield’s, his cap-hit in 2025 would be around $7-9m (Mayfield’s is $6.9m this year). The Seahawks could move Smith to save $31.5m, use $7m of that saving to pay Darnold for next season, and have $24.5m to spend. They’d be swapping a $44.5m cap hit at quarterback for a $20.5m total cost ($13.5m in dead money for Smith plus Darnold’s cap-hit).
They can easily sustain higher cap-hits for Darnold in 2026 and 2027. They currently have a projected $147m and $248m to spend in each season respectively.
Under Schneider we’ve already seen the Seahawks move off Matt Hasselbeck, Matt Flynn and Russell Wilson. There’s no reason to think they wouldn’t move off Geno Smith.
Darnold might not be ‘the guy’ to get you to a Super Bowl. He has just helped his team to a 14-win season though. He’s just had a 35-touchdown campaign. Smith has not achieved this. So if you’re going to pay a mid-range bridge to buy yourself time while you try and find the next great QB in the draft — why wouldn’t it be someone younger with a connection to your prospective next OC, with a financial saving in 2025 thrown into the mix?
Other thoughts
As we get close to free agency we’ll do more work on what they may or may not do. There are some interesting potential reclamation projects. I always saw Alabama left tackle Jedrick Wills as a guard. Cleveland drafted him to play tackle and it hasn’t suited him. He could end up being Seattle’s answer to Mekhi Becton in Philadelphia (another free agent I’d also consider signing).
There are some interesting defenders set to reach free agency too. I’d be intrigued to see what Mike Macdonald could do with a Jevon Holland or Andre Cisco. Talanoa Hufanga has had injury problems but when healthy, he’s a quality player. He was a big blog favourite back in the day (second round grade).
The defensive line options carry some intrigue — Milton Williams, DJ Jones, BJ Hill and Dayo Odeyingbo for example. Tight end Tommy Tremble can also do a lot of what Seattle needs at the position.
