Getty The Seahawks could seek a replacement for Geno Smith if he struggles.
The Seattle Seahawks might find themselves in a situation looking for a new franchise quarterback during the middle of the season.
As part of a number of “bold” trade predictions made by Bleacher Report’s Brad Gagnon, he mentions the Seahawks as a potential team to make a trade deadline move for Dallas Cowboys quarterback Dak Prescott. The scenario would hinge on the Cowboys proving to be more pretender than contender early on in the season, which would result in Dallas moving their three-time Pro Bowl quarterback at the trade deadline as he goes through the final season of his contract.
“Quarterbacks rarely move in the middle of seasons, but most of the ingredients are there in this case. Now, if a contender were to suffer a major injury at quarterback, or if a team like Las Vegas or Seattle finds itself in contention in spite of what it has at quarterback, a deadline blockbuster involving Prescott could come to fruition,” writes Gagnon.
Why the Seahawks Could Move on From Geno Smith
The idea of the Seahawks making a move for another quarterback isn’t exactly a crazy scenario. While Geno Smith has played in the Pro Bowl in each of the past two years, Seattle hasn’t won a single playoff game. In fact, Smith has never won a playoff game in his career and it doesn’t help matters that Seattle missed the postseason last year.
When factoring in that the Seahawks feature a new regime in head coach Mike Macdonald and offensive coordinator Ryan Grubb, they’re not exactly attached to Smith the way former head coach Pete Carroll — who named Smith as his starter prior to the 2022 season — was over the past two seasons.
It’s no coincidence that it took Macdonald awhile before committing to Smith as his starting quarterback for the 2024 season. This hesitation came after the Seahawks had acquired former Washington Commanders starting quarterback Sam Howell via trade during the offseason.
If Smith falters or is sluggish to begin the season, the Seahawks may see that it’s beneficial to acquire Prescott to get them over the hump. Prescott is coming off of a career-best season in total touchdowns (38), completions (410) and passer rating (105.9 passer rating). He finished as the runner-up in MVP voting during the 2023 season.
Why Cowboys Could Move Dak Prescott at Trade Deadline
Despite his career year, the Cowboys and Prescott are still struggling to gain traction in contract talks.
Gagnon also mentions how he believes the Philadelphia Eagles — not the Cowboys — are the team to beat in the NFC East. Dallas is the reigning division champion, but Philadelphia started out the season an NFL-best 10-1 before faltering towards the end of the season, resulting in a wild card berth. Furthermore, the Eagles won the division during the 2022 season before advancing to the Super Bowl.
Five of the Cowboys’ first eight opponents of the season — all occurring before the trade deadline — were playoff teams during the 2023 season. That means we’ll get a good idea of where the Cowboys stand as a team before the deadline on November 5.
If the Cowboys make Prescott available — without a long-term contract extension in place — the Seahawks could emerge as a potential landing spot if Smith’s numbers decline in 2024.