The Seahawks traded franchise quarterback Russell Wilson to the Denver Broncos this offseason and are now headed into the new year with Geno Smith and Drew Lock duking it out to be Seattle’s new starter for now.
Having opted not to select Wilson’s replacement in April’s draft, the Seahawks signaled they are willing to wait until the QB-heavy class of 2023 to find their signal-caller of the future.
Luke Easterling of Draft Wire sees the potential in this next crop of quarterbacks.
“If your favorite NFL team needed a quarterback in the 2022 draft, but decided to punt on a fairly weak class and wait for this year’s group, it won’t be surprising if that turns out to be a wise move,” he writes.
“Obviously, draft stock seems to change on a weekly basis (both in-season and out, and especially with quarterbacks), but there’s plenty to be excited about in this next crop of top passers.”
The top two most obvious choices are Ohio State’s C.J. Stroud and Alabama’s Heisman-winning Bryce Young. Depending on how successful Seattle’s season is, however, there is plenty of talent to choose from once the top two come off the board, including: Kentucky’s Will Levis, Washington State’s Cam Ward, Florida’s Anthony Richardson and Miami’s Tyler Van Dyke.
“All of those quarterbacks have some level of wild-card potential, with tons of talent, but their own unique reasons to wonder whether or not they’ll be able to reach their lofty individual ceilings,” Easterling continues. “Even so, it’s impossible to ignore that when they were at their best last season, they all looked like first-round material.”
