With all the moves the Seattle Seahawks had made so far this offseason, a potential trade was to be expected down the line for Sam Howell. First, it was signing Sam Darnold, and then the signing of Drew Lock a few weeks later in NFL free agency sealed the fate for Sam Howell as a Seattle Seahawk.
Less than a week away from the 2025 NFL Draft, this was officially confirmed by Jeremy Fowler who stated that the Seahawks were open to taking calls regarding a trade for Howell officially.
With that being said, Howell still has the talent to be a good backup, or even spot-starter for a team in 2025. For the Minnesota Vikings, they should be a team looking to trade for him.
Minnesota Vikings Trading for Sam Howell
The Minnesota Vikings let Sam Darnold walk, which showcases they aren’t necessarily looking for someone to completely compete with JJ McCarthy for the starting job in 2025. Yet, the current backup on the team is Brett Rypien, and for a Vikings team looking to take the next leap as contenders in 2025, this is not an ideal scenario to be in.
McCarthy is undoubtedly the starter for 2025, but he is also coming back off a season-ending knee injury that he suffered in the preseason, keeping him from playing at all as a rookie. Minnesota needs more quarterback depth to make sure they don’t rush McCarthy back before he is ready, while also making sure if McCarthy misses time at all next season there isn’t a drop-off in production that could ruin their season.
That is where the trade for Sam Howell comes into play for Minnesota to consider. After being linked to Aaron Rodgers, Ryan Tannehill, Daniel Jones, and Joe Flacco, it is clear that the Vikings are searching for a backup quarterback just in case. With the Seahawks now taking calls on Howell, it presents the Vikings their new best opportunity to have the backup job secure for the 2025 season.
Howell hasn’t necessarily had the highlight start to his career like he may have hoped, but he has still shown he can provide serviceable play during the durations in which he has been on the field. In the season that Howell had the starting role for the Washington Commanders in 2023, he put up 3,945 yards and 21 touchdowns. The alarming thing is it also came with 21 interceptions. Luckily for the Vikings, they have the offensive-minded head coach in Kevin O’Connell that runs a quarterback-friendly scheme, as showcased by Sam Arnold’s career resurgence he had last season operating under it.
This should provide the confidence to O’Connell that he could work with Howell on cutting down the interceptions as well if called upon during the 2025 season. Trading for him should only take either a fifth or sixth-round pick as well, making it worthwhile for the Vikings to consider trading for Sam Howell as their backup for the 2025 NFL season.
