Seahawks QB Situation: Biggest Offseason Priority?
Entering the season, the Seattle Seahawks looked like a good bet to make the playoffs after doing it in the first year post-Russell Wilson as Geno Smith had a Pro Bowl campaign.
He couldn't quite replicate that in 2023 and as a result, the Seahawks were inconsistent and missed the playoffs at 9-8 despite at one stage being a respectable 6-3 on the year.
As we look ahead to an offseason that will be dominated early on by the head coaching search after Pete Carroll was relieved of his duties, what is the Seahawks' biggest priority on the field this offseason?
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ESPN has things squarely pointed at the quarterbacks.
"Identifying -- and helping -- their quarterbacks is key for the Seahawks," ESPN wrote. "The first piece of this shouldn't take long. Geno Smith's $12.7 million base salary for 2024 will become fully guaranteed if he remains on the roster past Feb. 16, making that a likely deadline to determine whether he'll remain the starting quarterback. Even if they stick with Smith, they'll have to re-sign Drew Lock and/or draft another backup. They will also have to figure out how to make their quarterback better on third down, an issue that has held back the Seattle offense for years."
The Seahawks offense was up-and-down at stages this season. Early on, things were clicking but then the wheels fell off for a month after a four-game losing streak.
ESPN writes that Seattle needs to be better on third down. The Seahawks finished the regular season 23rd on third down, converting just 36.23 percent of the time. For a team that had playoff aspirations, that won't cut it.
The other thing that ESPN points out is exactly who will be the starting quarterback next season. Seattle has the No. 16 overall pick, so trading up to be in a position to draft a quarterback would likely require an absurd amount of capital.
Smith does have an out in his contract in 2024 and it will be interesting to see how the organization plays it going forward.
There's many things that need to be addressed for the Seahawks, but the biggest (aside from hiring a new head coach) seems to be figuring out their quarterback situation.
