Revealed: Tom Brady told the Raiders not to sign Sam Darnold before Geno Smith moved to Las Vegas
Tom Brady and the Las Vegas Raiders are gearing up for a huge 2025 campaign after an offseason of upheavel in Sin City.
Maxx Crosby signed a huge new deal, Pete Carroll took over as head coach and the organization traded for Geno Smith at quarterback from the Seattle Seahawks.
That move paved the way for Seattle to sign Sam Darnold as their main man but if the cards had fallen differently, Darnold might have been the man to usher in a new era in Vegas.
But according to a report in The Athletic, seven-time Super Bowl winner and Raiders minority owner Brady was not in favor of his team making a move for Darnold, who had entered free agency.
Overall, Darnold enjoyed a strong 2024. He led the Minnesota Vikings into the playoffs after starting quarterback J.J. McCarthy's season ended before it began with a knee injury in camp.
But Darnold's final two games were poor and the Vikings were blown away in the first round of the playoffs to the Los Angeles Rams, losing 27-9.
Instead, the Brady-approved Smith trade in March saw the Raiders get their quarterback and Darnold would eventually sign a three-year deal with the Seahawks worth $100.5million.
Smith, 34, then signed a two-year extension with the Raiders in April which could be worth up to $85million with incentives included. The quarterback played under new head coach Carroll in Seattle, too.
The Raiders ended 2024 with a miserable 4-13 record, last in the AFC West but the changes since then mean they will head to 2025 with fresh optimism - albeit in a brutal division alongside Denver Broncos, Los Angeles Chargers and the Kansas City Chiefs.
As well as the arrival of Smith, they also took highly-rated running-back Ashton Jeanty with their sixth pick in the first round of the NFL Draft this year.
They begin the season on the road to the New England Patriots - the team where Brady won six of his seven Super Bowls - before hosting the Los Angeles Chargers in Week 2.
Darnold, meanwhile, starts with the Seahawks against San Francisco 49ers.
The Raiders don't play the Seahawks in the regular season but they do meet for a preseason game on August 7 - Darnold will almost definitely not play that day, with teams unlikely to risk their quarterbacks before the season properly begins.
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