Seattle Seahawks' Sam Howell Trade 'Tough' for Washington Commanders Teammate

The Seattle Seahawks traded for Washington Commanders QB Sam Howell earlier this offseason.

Dec 17, 2023; Inglewood, California, USA; Washington Commanders quarterback Sam Howell (14) / Gary A. Vasquez-USA TODAY Sports

The Seattle Seahawks made one of the more interesting trades of the offseason when they acquired quarterback Sam Howell from the Washington Commanders, giving Geno Smith a new backup and the franchise a potential signal-caller for the future.

Howell had his fair share of struggles last season, but he still built a nice rapport with Commanders star receiver Terry McLaurin, who seconded this and admitted that seeing his QB go was "tough."

Jan 8, 2023; Landover, Maryland, USA; Washington Commanders wide receiver Terry McLaurin (17) and QB Sam Howell / Geoff Burke-USA TODAY Sports

“It’s always tough seeing someone you build a really good relationship with move on in their career,” McLaurin said. “Especially your quarterback, because as a receiver, you want to continue to try to build that chemistry. That was only our first year playing with one another, and I feel like him and I made some great plays, and we had some room for growth, and I think that comes with any new quarterback/receiver relationship.”

McLaurin has been one of the only bright spots for a lowly Washington team over the last few seasons. He finished 2023 with his fourth-straight 1,000-yard campaign along with 79 catches and four touchdowns.

"Scary Terry" was Howell's top weapon in Washington, but now the young QB will have plenty more around him with Seattle.

“To see him go in a situation to have a chance to compete and play under a really good quarterback in Geno," McLaurin said. "I think he’ll really like throwing to receivers like Lockett, Jaxon Smith-Njigba, and DK. So I think he’s going to a situation where he’ll have a chance to continue to show that he can play quarterback at a high level in this league, which I still truly believe.”

“I’ll always have a lot of respect for Sam, how he handled things good and bad last year,” McLaurin said. “I think he took a really big step in his career to continue to prove that he can play at a high level.”