The Seahawks should keep Drew Lock as Sam Darnold’s backup, the article argues: a trade likely would bring no better than an early Day 3 pick, while Seattle could get a third- or fourth-round compensatory pick if Lock signs above $20 million a year next offseason.
Sam Darnold is set to return as Seattle’s starter against Washington this week, sending Lock back to the bench. The article describes Jalen Milroe as a developmental project outside his Week 3 preseason game against Kansas City and questions whether Seattle would trust him in regular-season action if Darnold were injured.
Lock is on an expiring contract, so a team trading for him would be acquiring a rental, the article says. It cites Cincinnati’s midseason Joe Flacco trade—the Bengals sent Cleveland a fifth-round pick and received Flacco plus a sixth-rounder—as a guide to a likely return. For its compensatory-pick estimate, the piece points to the Eagles’ third-round selection after Milton Williams signed with New England for an average $26 million a year, and the 49ers’ fourth-round pick after Aaron Banks signed with Green Bay for $19.25 million annually. Seattle also has many 2027 draft picks, the article notes.
