Geno Smith made NFL headlines yesterday as Seattle traded their signal-caller to the Las Vegas Raiders for a 2025 third-round pick, reuniting Geno with his old head coach, Pete Carroll. Obviously, this changes a number of things from a dynasty perspective as we look to the 2025 NFL season and beyond. Here are my immediate thoughts on the trade from all angles.
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Las Vegas Raiders
With the Raiders trading for a starting veteran quarterback in Geno Smith, my immediate thought was they are going with a different position for their sixth overall pick in the upcoming NFL Draft. After all, Geno Smith has been an objectively good real-life quarterback since 2022.
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After further consideration, I’m not ruling out the possibility that Vegas traded for Geno to be their bridge quarterback, and their ultimate plan is to grab Shedeur Sanders this April. However, there’s no guarantee that Shedeur will even fall to #6. The Titans, Browns, and Giants make up the top three picks of the draft, all of whom are QB-needy. If these teams don’t trade for a veteran quarterback like Russell Wilson or Sam Darnold soon, it’s entirely possible that two of the three select a quarterback in the NFL Draft. Maybe Vegas didn’t like the amount they would have to pay to move up the draft board and guarantee they get their guy, so they felt it was more cost-effective to trade a third-round pick for a proven veteran.
Or MAYBE…just maybe…the Raiders plan to grab Jaxson Dart with their first-round pick to sit and learn behind Geno for a year. Dart has been climbing up draft boards and has been mocked in the first round more frequently in recent weeks. Remember last year, most of us didn’t expect J.J. McCarthy, Bo Nix, or Michael Penix Jr. to go nearly as high as they did. I don’t think this scenario is out of the question.
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It’s tough to gauge Geno’s dynasty value right now. Jordan Schultz reported that Vegas plans to make Geno their QB of the future, and they are working towards a long-term deal. However, I wouldn’t jump the gun and overpay for Smith. Let’s not forget he’s entering his age 35 season, so he’s no spring chicken. I believe this move should keep his dynasty value relatively stable, and I consider Geno a hold at this time.
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For the pass-catchers, I love this move. I’m not sure we could value Bowers more highly than we already did, but this is a plus for him and Jakobi Meyers. Bowers was the TE1 overall as a rookie, playing with Aidan O’Connell and Gardner Minshew under center. The sky really is the limit for him now.
The obvious hole to fill for Vegas in 2025 is the RB position. Alexander Mattison and Ameer Abdullah are headed to free agency, not that they were ever starting-caliber backs. Zamir White, Dylan Laube, and Isaiah Spiller are really the only RBs on contract for 2025. That’s not going to cut it. Do the Raiders look to Ashton Jeanty at pick #6 to secure their RB of the future? I’m a fan of this move for my Jeanty shares and the Raiders organization.
Seattle Seahawks
With Geno Smith leaving Seattle, Howell is technically the next man in line. No, he’s not the answer, and I would be shocked if he was the Seahawks starting quarterback in 2025. Seattle has the 18th overall pick in the draft, which is a reasonable spot for Jaxson Dart to fall in the draft. While I think this is possible, I doubt Seattle would trade away Geno, with their only plan being to cross their fingers that Dart falls to them in the draft. It’s more likely that they look to sign a veteran to a multi-year deal. One rumor circulating is Darnold heading to the Seahawks.
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Initially, we had heard rumblings of the Vikings’ front office looking to re-sign Darnold and possibly move McCarthy. Those rumblings have quieted since this trade news came out, and I expect Seattle is the most likely destination for Darnold.
So, how does this affect Seattle’s receivers from a dynasty perspective? Well, there may only be one notable receiver left on the roster. Tyler Lockett was recently released, and D.K. Metcalf has requested a trade, leaving just Jaxon Smith-Njigba. Talk about vacated targets – JSN could mess around and earn 200+ targets in 2025. In my opinion, Darnold in Seattle would be the best scenario for JSN. Darnold is just 27 years old and coming off a breakout year where he surpassed 4,300 pass yards on the season. This could push JSN up to being a borderline top 8 WR in dynasty moving forward.
Thank you for taking the time to read this article, and I hope you got some valuable information you can use for your fantasy team! If you’d like additional insight into Dynasty Football news and analysis, please follow me on Twitter at @jim_DFF. Until next time, keep grinding out there, DFF family! #DFFArmy #AlwaysBeBuilding
