Ever since the Seattle Seahawks drafted dual-threat quarterback Jalen Milroe in April, there’s been speculation that the team could sprinkle him into the game plan as a change-of-pace weapon.
Head coach Mike Macdonald has now confirmed that’s indeed what the Seahawks plan to do.
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Milroe is still clearly Seattle’s third-string quarterback behind starter Sam Darnold and backup Drew Lock. But according to Macdonald, the speedy rookie QB will indeed have a specialty package that highlights his electrifying athleticism.
“We’re gonna have plays for Jalen in game plans, and he’s gonna rep those (in practice) with the ones,” Macdonald said Monday, referring to Seattle’s first-team offense. “And however we build the package for him going into games, he needs those reps in walkthrough and full speed. So that’s gonna be important.”
Macdonald emphasized the priority is still to ensure Darnold gets enough first-team practice reps.
“Obviously Sam, it starts with how many reps he needs to get ready, and then we kind of work off from there,” Macdonald said.
Macdonald first hinted at using Milroe in a unique role on the night Seattle drafted him.
“Sam is going to take by far and away over 90% of our (game) snaps this year,” Macdonald said back in April. “However, (if) Jalen deserves and earns the right to go out there, then we’ll do that. If it’s going to help the team, and (it’s the best way) for us to move the ball, give these defensive coordinators some headaches, which I’m really happy it’s not going to be us, that’s awesome.”
Quick with it. 💨
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— Seattle Seahawks (@Seahawks) August 8, 2025
‘A good foundation to move forward’
With big-time speed packed into a linebacker’s body, the 6-foot-2, 217-pound Milroe has a tantalizing level of athleticism. He put that on full display during his college career at Alabama, where he rushed for 1,257 yards and 32 touchdowns over the past two seasons.
But as a passer, Milroe enters the NFL as a developmental project. He has NFL-level arm strength, but struggled at times with accuracy and decision-making at Alabama, including a rough stretch last year where he threw just five touchdown passes and 10 interceptions in eight SEC games.
Milroe showed both flashes of talent and areas to improve this preseason. He completed 22 of 39 passes for 255 yards, one TD and no picks, while rushing for 87 yards on 15 carries. But he also took six sacks and lost three fumbles – all three of which came in Saturday’s preseason finale against the Green Bay Packers.
“I thought there was a lot of good stuff,” Macdonald said when asked about Milroe’s performance against the Packers. “He made some really good throws on time, went through his progressions. You go back to (losing) the ball. I mean, I think that’s pretty obvious leaving the field.
“But I thought the guy made some really cool plays throughout the game, stuff that we can build on moving forward. So yeah, of course there’s things that we want to get better at and put up more points and all that type of stuff, but definitely a good foundation to move forward.”
The gameday plan
One question involving Milroe is whether the Seahawks plan to activate all three quarterbacks on gameday.
Teams carry 53 players on their roster during the regular season, but are limited to 48 active players on gameday.
Seattle could have just Darnold and Milroe active on gamedays, with Lock inactive. But then if Darnold got injured, Milroe would have to fill in as the backup.
The Seahawks could avoid that dilemma by activating all three QBs. But that would leave them with one less active player at another position that might be more likely to play.
“We’ve worked out both scenarios,” Macdonald said. “During preseason, we do a mock (of) who would be up (on the 48-man gameday roster), how would we handle it – just so with the new offensive staff, making sure we understand what it’s gonna look like.”
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