7 Seahawks moves John Schneider still needs to make this offseason
By Lee Vowell
Schneider must decide if Seattle is going to pass on a quarterback in the 2024 NFL draft
This point seems obvious, but is it? Seattle currently has two veteran quarterbacks on its roster. Geno Smith will be QB1 and Sam Howell will be his backup. Both quarterbacks are under contract for the next two seasons. If Seattle wants to draft its quarterback of the future, they don't truly have to do that until 2026. But John Schneider also doesn't want to be stale and has already said he isn't proud of the fact that the Seahawks have only chosen two quarterbacks since 2010.
If there is a quarterback that Schneider really likes in the draft, he could still trade Smith for a draft pick or two and eat the cap space that Smith brings. Then Seattle could install Sam Howell as the starter until the rookie acclimates to the NFL and could then take over. Howell is signed to a team-friendly deal through 2025 so he could either be the starter or the backup and he has the personality to be content either way. Seattle might just need to find a way to trade up in the draft to choose a high-end quarterback.
John Schneider has to figure out how he is going to add a second-round pick
Speaking of draft trades, as part of the deal to add Howell, Seattle had to trade one of its third-round picks. This means Seattle has one first-round choice and one third-round pick as well as two fourth-round selections. The Seahawks really need to find a way to get the second-round choice it lost during the 2023 season when Schneider traded for defensive lineman Leonard Williams. Seattle has too many roster needs to simply stick with one choice in the first 81 choices in the 2024 draft.
One potential way for Seattle to add a second-round pick is to trade back from the number 16 choice the team currently holds. But that might mean giving up any chance the team has at taking a player such as Troy Fautanu. If there is an interior offensive lineman that Schneider likes a lot that might still be around in the 20s of the draft, a trade-back makes sense, especially if that means getting a second-round choice back as well.