The Seahawks have the number one overall pick in the 2019 NFL Draft and seem to be looking for a quarterback. However, many are questioning if they should take Drew Lock with their first round selection after he only threw 33 touchdowns (compared to Kyler Murray’s 39).
The “is russell wilson retiring 2021” is a question that has been asked many times. The Seahawks were able to trade up and get Russell Wilson, but they did not get enough for him. Examining Drew Lock & Co., the Cardinals are paying a lot of money for their QB.
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Brady Henderson is a professional football player. ESPN
SEATTLE (AP) — The Seattle Seahawks are getting a package of draft selections and players from the Denver Broncos as part of the Russell Wilson deal, according to one NFL talent evaluator from another team:
“That seems about right.”
And here’s what the same evaluator said about one of the Seahawks’ new acquisitions:
“I don’t think they’ll start the season with Drew Lock as quarterback.”
That is why it is impossible to make a quick assessment of how Seattle fared in one of the most significant moves in NFL history.
According to ESPN’s Adam Schefter, the Seahawks will get Denver’s first- and second-round selections in the next two seasons (including Nos. 9 and 40 overall this year), as well as the Broncos’ fifth-round pick in 2022. Along with Wilson, they’ll acquire Lock, tight end Noah Fant, and defensive lineman Shelby Harris, while sending a 2022 fourth-round pick to Denver.
That’s an impressive haul in and of itself. And it’s a better deal than the one the Detroit Lions acquired in the Matthew Stafford trade last year: Jared Goff, the Los Angeles Rams’ third-round pick in 2021, as well as first-round picks in 2022 and 2023. The rest of Goff’s contract had to be taken up by Detroit as well.
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The Washington Commanders are the only other team known to have made an offer for Wilson. It includes their first-round selections in each of the following three drafts, according to ESPN’s John Keim. This year, Washington owns the 11th overall pick, which is two positions below Seattle.
The Seahawks, who were a regular playoff club until this year and so generally selected in the 20s, have the ninth overall selection, which makes this a very different draft for them. Under general manager John Schneider and coach Pete Carroll, they’ve only made two top-10 choices in 12 rounds. Both came in 2010, when they drafted Russell Okung (left tackle) at No. 6 and Earl Thomas (safety) at No. 14. Outside linebacker Bruce Irvin was the only other player picked in the top 20 by their current management, at No. 15 overall in 2012.
Despite the well-deserved criticism the Seahawks have received for their early-round mistakes, they have a far better track record when selecting later in the draft. Thomas has a chance to be inducted into the Hall of Fame. Okung and Irvin have both performed well.
In the Jamal Adams deal, the Seahawks traded up their initial first-round selection (which ended up being No. 10 overall… ouch), but they still have four choices in the top 72 and eight overall. One first (9), two seconds (40, 41), one third (72), one fourth, two fifths, and one seventh are the divisions.
Because they no longer have the luxury of outstanding quarterback performance to cover up personnel blunders, the focus is on Schneider and Carroll to capitalize on their new-found draft fortune.
The participants
Lock slipped to No. 42 overall after earning first-round anticipation before to the 2019 draft. He ranks 38th in Total QBR among quarterbacks who have attempted at least 400 passes since then, directly below the Commanders’ Taylor Heinicke and the Carolina Panthers’ Sam Darnold. Lock also ranks 38th in touchdown-to-interception ratio and 32nd in yards per attempt, indicating some shaky decision-making.
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Granted, the sample size is small. Lock has only appeared in 24 games (21 starts) as a rookie, missing 11 due to a thumb injury. However, following a turnover-plagued 2020 season, he lost his starting spot and spent the most of the 2021 season backing up Teddy Bridgewater.
Lock’s tenacity and bravado are liked by the evaluator who does not believe he will be Seattle’s starter in 2022. He described him as a talented athlete who “truly knows how to spin it.”
“He’s got a tremendous arm, he’s done a pretty nice job as far as utilizing his legs, as far as being an athlete,” new Broncos offensive coordinator Justin Outten said of Lock last month.
Lock seems to be a competent backup with some starting experience and the potential to evolve into something more.
The Seahawks are acquiring two sure-fire starters in Fant and Harris.
Before Denver selected Fant at No. 20, the Seahawks were seriously contemplating choosing him at No. 21 overall in 2019. In three seasons, he’s averaged 57 catches and 635 receiving yards, with 10 touchdown grabs in 47 games. Last season, he set a career best with 68 catches for 670 yards and four touchdowns.
“Incredibly athletic, really soft hands,” the evaluator observed of Fant, who has a 4.49 speed and a great run-after-the-catch ability at 6-foot-4, 249 pounds.
Fant is more Gerald Everett than Will Dissly in that he is a pass-catching tight end who can be moved about rather than a classic end-line tight end. Both are unattached. If the Seahawks decide to keep one, Dissly’s blocking abilities may make him a better fit.
Shelby Harris got six sacks for the Broncos last season and is expected to play inside defensive end for the Seahawks this season in their 3-4 system. Icon Sportswire/Frank Jansky
Harris, 30, is coming off a season with six sacks, which ties for his highest since joining the NFL as a seventh-round choice in 2014. In 83 career games, he has 22.5 sacks.
Harris, who is 6-2 and 290 pounds, seems to be an inner linebacker in Seattle’s new defensive front, which Carroll has claimed would include outside linebackers on the edges. If Kerry Hyder Jr. wasn’t already in peril, his inclusion may put him in danger.
Harris’ deal has two years and $17 million remaining on it. This season, he’ll earn $7.5 million in salary and $500,000 in per-game roster incentives for a $8 million cap figure. Lock’s rookie contract, worth $1.5 million, has one year remaining on it. Fant also has one year remaining on his deal, which pays $2.2 million, but Seattle can keep him under contract until 2023 if he exercises his fifth-year option by the May 2 deadline.
Lock, Fant, and Harris have a combined cap number of $11.7 million for 2022. Wilson’s trade saves the Seahawks a net of $11 million against this year’s cap, so it’s a near-wash. The Seahawks, on the other hand, are no longer responsible for the $51 million Wilson was slated to earn in cash over the last two years of his contract.
The “russell wilson return” is a question that has been asked for quite some time. The Seahawks got Russell Wilson back, but did they get enough? Examining Drew Lock & Co.
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