At the time, it barely registered as a headline.
When the Seattle Seahawks traded quarterback Geno Smith to the Las Vegas Raiders for a third-round pick during the 2025 offseason, it felt like a routine reshuffle — a veteran moving on, a franchise resetting, a mid-round pick changing hands quietly. No fireworks. No outrage. No clear winner.
Now, with Seattle preparing to play in Super Bowl 60, that trade reads very differently.
The Seahawks didn’t just move on from Geno Smith. They rewired their future in one understated transaction.
Seattle used the third-round pick (No. 92 overall) acquired from the Raiders to draft Alabama quarterback Jalen Milroe — a decision that, at the time, raised eyebrows. Milroe was viewed as a developmental prospect, raw but explosive, someone who might take years to fully materialize. He wasn’t expected to matter immediately.
But the trade didn’t stop there.
Shortly after sending Smith to Las Vegas, Seattle signed Sam Darnold in free agency. The move was met with skepticism. Darnold was cheaper than Smith, less proven, and widely viewed as a bridge option rather than a solution. What followed rewrote that perception entirely.
Darnold didn’t just stabilize the position — he elevated it.
Under center, the Seahawks found rhythm, balance, and momentum. Darnold led Seattle through a season that steadily gained belief, culminating in a Super Bowl appearance that few predicted when the offseason began. Suddenly, the cost-cutting decision looked like a masterstroke.
Meanwhile, the quarterback they traded away became part of a very different story.
Geno Smith’s season in Las Vegas unraveled quickly. Expectations were high, but the fit never materialized. The offense struggled. Consistency vanished. By season’s end, Smith’s tenure with the Raiders was widely viewed as a failure — so much so that his release this offseason is now expected.
That contrast is impossible to ignore.
Seattle effectively turned Geno Smith into two quarterbacks: one who carried them to the Super Bowl, and one who might become their future. Darnold delivered the present. Milroe represents possibility.
There’s an added layer of irony that only deepens the narrative.
Had the Raiders kept that third-round pick, there’s a strong belief around the league that Milroe could have been their target. Las Vegas spent considerable time evaluating quarterbacks ahead of the draft, and Milroe was frequently linked to them. Instead, they handed Seattle the opportunity to make the call themselves.
Seattle didn’t hesitate.
Now, Milroe develops quietly behind the scenes, while Darnold plays on the league’s biggest stage. The Seahawks have flexibility. Options. Leverage. They don’t need Milroe to be ready immediately — which might be the most valuable part of the situation.
None of this was guaranteed when the trade was made.
At the time, Seattle was accused of gambling. Of downgrading. Of chasing savings instead of stability. But what looked like uncertainty now reads as clarity: move on early, trust the process, and let outcomes catch up.
As Super Bowl 60 approaches, the Geno Smith trade feels less like a footnote and more like a pivot point. A reminder that the most consequential decisions are often the quietest ones — the moves that don’t beg for attention but end up reshaping everything around them.
Seattle didn’t just win a trade.
They bought themselves time, flexibility, and belief.
And now, with a championship within reach, that once-forgotten third-round pick looms larger than ever — not because of what it was, but because of what it became.
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