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Seattle Seahawks general manager John Schneider is one of the longest-tenured GMs in the league. He's been in charge in Seattle since 2010 and has led them to plenty of success throughout his career, including building two championship teams.
Part of what makes Schneider so good is his ability to pull of big trades that benefit his team. He's hopeful that his recent move for guard Quenton Nelson could be the missing piece on their offense. If so, it could go down as a major win for the Seahawks, but it won't necessarily be his greatest pre-deadline deals.
That's because Schneider has fleeced teams in the past. That includes being on the right side of two trades that Bleacher Report's Brent Sobleski named among the 10 worst deadline moves over the past decade.
After being unable to come to terms with Duane Brown on an extension, the Houston Texans sent Brown, along with a 2018 fifth-round pick, to Seattle inexchange for a 2018 third-round pick and a 2019 second-round pick. As Sobleski says, the Texans thought they were getting excellent value for a player set to decline, but instead, they gave Seattle a stud who made two Pro Bowls in four seasons.
"The Houston Texans thought they were getting a premium return for a declining veteran. They were wrong," Sobleski wrote. "Duane Brown was 32 years old when the Texans shipped him to the Seattle Seahawks. Brown would go on to play seven more seasons, including four and a half in Seattle."
Following his stint in Seattle, Brown signed a two-year deal with the New York Jets. He retired following the 2023 season, playing until he was 38.
Brown isn't the only veteran who was sent to Seattle only to surpass expectations. Schneider landed Leonard Williams during the 2023 season in exchange for a 2024 second-round pick and a fifth-rounder in 2025. Considering he was on an expiring contract, plus the fact that the Giants were rebuilding, it made sense to move Williams. That said, the return wasn't enough, according to Sobleski, considering what Williams has done in Seattle.
"In retrospect, the Giants didn't get enough in return for Williams, who has been dominant with the Seahawks. Granted, landing second- and fifth-round picks for an expiring contract is usually viewed as an excellent return. In this case, it wasn't.Williams has since been named to two Pro Bowls and a second-team All-Pro. He won a Super Bowl in 2025 as Seattle's best defensive player," Sobleski wrote.
Williams admitted that he was considering ending his career, but fell in love with the game again in Seattle. The culture, and of course, the winning has him focused like never before and he's been one of the more prominent leaders of the Dark Side Defense.