On March 10, Sam Darnold signed a three-year, $100.5 million deal with the Seattle Seahawks, establishing himself as Geno Smith’s replacement as the starting quarterback.
His contract includes a $32,000,000 signing bonus and $52,500,000 guaranteed. But a particular term in his contract reflects the franchise not being completely confident in Darnold’s skills: $17.5 million in injury guarantees that will vest if he’s unable to pass a physical in early February 2026.
This makes getting benched late in the season an obvious option for the franchise if Darnold doesn’t perform per their expectations, or the Seahawks’ season doesn’t go well. While it presents a tough challenge for Darnold, it presents an equally tough challenge for head coach Mike McDonald to have another quarterback ready to take on the starting role.
Seahawks Predicted To Draft a Quarterback in Round One
In a hypothetical bold situation, the Seahawks could pick a quarterback at No. 17. The main reason behind it would be Darnold not working out for the franchise. Not to mention, Darnold’s cap hit drops to a manageable $25 million after 2025, giving the Seahawks a way to pivot quickly if needed.
PFSN’s Rece Davis believes this reason could propel the Seahawks to draft a quarterback. “Seattle is still evaluating quarterbacks, bringing in Shough and Milroe for top-30 visits. After how Darnold played in two critical games last season, don’t be surprised if Seattle drafts a developmental QB on Day 2 or 3,” Davis writes.
Both Shough and Milroe are considered the top five quarterbacks in this class. Yet they need to develop certain areas, like consistency and accuracy as passers for Milroe and pocket presence under pressure for Shough, among others, to succeed at the NFL level.
That said, Darnold led the Vikings to a 14-3 record while making the Pro Bowl, and set career bests in passing yards (4,319), passing touchdowns (35), completion percentage (66.2%), and passer rating (102.5) in 2024. The chances of him not playing well enough for Seattle are less, not unlikely, but less.
How Could This Play Out?
If Darnold handles the starting quarterback reins well enough, the Seahawks won’t immediately switch to another quarterback. In this scenario, whichever of the two (Milroe and Shough) gets drafted would mainly be Darnold’s backup quarterback, at least in the near future.
This situation would ideally be win-win for everyone involved. The Seahawks would get a reliable long-term starting quarterback in Darnold and a reliable backup in Milroe/Shough. The rookie quarterbacks would get the time they need to polish their skills, and Darnold could finally call Seattle his home for a decent time.