Major NFL Trade Shakes Up QB Market, Creates a New Landing Spot for Sam Darnold

Well, the NFL QB market just got a bit more fascinating.

Las Vegas, a team long connected to Sam Darnold, has decided to fill their need for a passer with someone else. Consider the update from The Athletic’s Dianna Russini: “Trade! The Las Vegas Raiders have traded with the Seattle Seahawks for quarterback Geno Smith, per sources.”

Immediately thereafter, Russini dropped the golden nugget for Minnesota fans: “The Seattle Seahawks are now targeting Sam Darnold.”

The Major NFL QB Trade and Sam Darnold’s New Option

Russini goes on to provide some crucial context.

Consider one thought: “QB Sam Darnold’s market has been all over the map the last 24 hours. Once it became known that Seattle was interested in trading with the Las Vegas Raiders last night for Geno Smith, Darnold’s market improved.”

And another: “Seahawks OC Klint Kubiak coached Sam Darnold so there is familiarity. Let’s see if Seattle will be willing to give Darnold at least a three year contract, which is what he’s looking for at his next stop.”

Lately, Seattle has been going through some major changes.

Most notably, longtime receiver Tyler Lockett was shown the door, cut in an effort to save precious cap space. Meanwhile, D.K. Metcalf is on the trade market. In Seattle, that’s two top receivers and the QB1 from 2024 all moving onto a new team in the same offseason. Keep in mind that the Seahawks entered a new era last offseason when they hired Mike Macdonald as the head coach.

The Russini update about Darnold looking for a minimum of three years is notable. Understandably, the veteran is looking for a bit of stability and a strong commitment. These past three seasons have featured shuffling, going from Carolina to San Francisco to Minnesota. Settling into a single city and building a rapport within a specific offense makes a lot of sense.

The Kubiak point is also a good one. The former Minnesota OC worked under Kyle Shanahan with the 49ers, so there will be a really good understanding of Darnold’s abilities.

Last season, Darnold performed wonderfully in a pivotal late-season game in Seattle. Minnesota’s QB1 went 22/35 for 246 yards, 3 touchdowns, and 0 interceptions. The Vikings won the game by a score of 27-24. Darnold finished his day with a 112.3 passer rating.

If he goes to Seattle, Sam Darnold will be throwing the ball to Jaxon Smith-Njigba — one of the best young receivers in the NFL — while getting good ground support from Kenneth Walker III and Zach Charbonnet.

Don’t be surprised if a three-year deal for Darnold soars past $100 million. The Vikings could afford the number — the team is sitting on roughly $60 million in cap space — but seem very unlikely to match a number so high with J.J. McCarthy ready and waiting.

Editor’s Note: Information from Pro Football Reference and Over the Cap helped with this piece.

K. Joudry is the Senior Editor for Vikings Territory and PurplePTSD. He has been covering the Vikings full time since the summer of 2021. He can be found on social media (Bluesky & Twitter). If you feel so inclined, subscribe to his Substack, The Vikings Gazette, for more great Vikings content.