The Seattle Seahawks are showing a big commitment to Geno Smith after passing on a quarterback ... [+]
For all of the talk of the Seattle Seahawks’ interest in the top four quarterbacks of the 2023 NFL Draft, they sure fooled everyone.
Instead, they’re sticking with Geno Smith as the clear franchise quarterback moving forward.
As Seattle entered the draft with the No. 5 and No. 20 overall picks in the draft, their interest in quarterback prospects Bryce Young, C.J. Stroud, Anthony Richardson and Will Levis were made very public.
In fact, head coach Pete Carroll and general manager John Schneider were seen taking selfies with Stroud, Young and Levis at their pro days leading up to the draft.
With the No. 5 pick, the Seahawks seemed to be in perfect position to select either Richardson or Levis, who were expected to be drafted after Young and Stroud. While that didn’t quite exactly happen with Richardson being scooped up by the Indianapolis Colts at the No . 4 selection, the Seahawks did have an opportunity to draft Levis with their No. 5 and their No. 20 picks.
They passed both times.
Instead, Seattle opted to beef up its secondary by surprising everyone with the selection of Illinois cornerback Devon Witherspoon at the No. 5 pick. And then with another opportunity to pick Levis — who was widely considered to be a top 10 pick heading into the draft — they passed on him at No. 20 to give Smith a bonafide third receiving option in wide receiver Jaxon Smith-Njigba out of Ohio State.
Not only did the Seahawks pass on the opportunity at selecting one of the top quarterback prospects — they also had multiple chances at drafting Hendon Hooker, the fifth-best quarterback prospect in the draft — in the 2023 NFL Draft, they passed on selecting a quarterback altogether.
Of Seattle’s 10 total draft selections, they didn’t pick a single quarterback. In fact, they opted for three offensive skill position players and five defenders, clearly looking to beef up Smith’s supporting cast along with a defensive unit that ranked 25th last season.
Instead, their lone quarterback addition in the immediate aftermath of the draft was the signing of former East Carolina quarterback Holton Ahlers as an undrafted free agent.
Considering the Seahawks carried only two quarterbacks on its roster last season, Ahlers projects as a practice squad developmental quarterback more than anything else. Drew Lock is returning to the Seahawks as the backup to Smith for the second straight season after inking a one-year, $4 million contract.
By doing so, they sent a vote of confidence Smith’s way just weeks after signing him to a three-year, $75 million deal.
The Seahawks’ general manager, Schneider, explained why Seattle didn’t take a single quarterback in the 2023 NFL Draft.
Via Gregg Bell of The News Tribune:
“There’s three quarterbacks that went right ahead of us,”Schneider said Saturday after Seattle passed on drafting a quarterback. “And you can’t just push it because of like a narrative. “It has to feel right for everybody, the whole team, the locker room, coaches.”
While the Seahawks could have very well drafted Richardson — the quarterback prospect they were most linked to — had he dropped to No. 5, there’s no guarantee they would have given how they approached the quarterback position throughout the draft.
Seahawks brass marveled over Richardson’s pro day, with Schneider saying he has a “ton of physical talent,” during his weekly radio show appearance on Seattle Sports.
Via Michael-Shawn Dugar of The Athletic:
“Really impressive,” Schneider said of Richardson’s workout. “He has a ton of physical talent, there’s no question about it.”
Instead, the Seahawks are giving a clear thumbs-up to Smith as they enter the 2023 season with the veteran quarterback as the unquestioned starter for the present and in the near future.
Smith’s deal with Seattle raised question marks relating to his long-term future with the franchise. The construction of the deal gives the Seahawks the flexibility to move on from Smith after a year or two. It doesn’t help that Smith — through 10 seasons in the NFL — has had one productive season as a starter. In fact, prior to the 2022 season, he hadn’t served as a full-time starter since the 2014 season.
If Seattle decides to move on from Smith after this season, they’ll absorb a dead cap hit of $17.4 million. If they choose to move on after the 2024 season, the dead cap hit will be just $8.7 million.
While the construction of the contract gives the Seahawks flexibility in moving on from the veteran passer, their decision to pass on adding a potential franchise quarterback makes it hard to envision Seattle unloading Smith after this season.
As he enters training camp as the unquestioned starter for the first time with the Seahawks, Smith won’t have to look over his shoulder.
Considering the quarterback prospects that were available in this year’s draft, that has to be a big relief for Smith moving forward.
