3 Quarterbacks the Seattle Seahawks Can Still Target After Baker Mayfield Trade To Carolina

The Cleveland Browns have traded quarterback Baker Mayfield, the first pick in the 2018 Draft, to the Carolina Panthers for a 2024 conditional fifth-round pick.

While that should be an upgrade for the Panthers, other teams that might have thought they had a shot at Mayfield are now left to scramble for any potential QBB solutions.

Once the Cleveland Browns made their blockbuster trade for QB Deshaun Watson, the writing was on the wall for Mayfield in Cleveland. Even with a likely lengthy suspension looming for Watson, Mayfield had made it clear that he was done with the Browns.

With Mayfield available, one of the teams that were considered a potential landing spot was the Seattle Seahawks, a team that is currently heading towards the 2022 NFL season with journeymen Geno Smith and Drew Lock atop their QB depth chart.

Smith is 31 years old and started three games last season, his most in a season since 2014. He attempted 95 passes, completing 68.4%, and threw for 702 yards with five touchdowns and one interception. Lock, 25, was part of the package that the Seahawks received from the Denver Broncos in return for Russell Wilson. Lock started three games for Denver last season and attempted 111 passes overall, completing 60.4%, for 787 yards, with two touchdowns and two interceptions.

Those are hardly numbers that are indicative of a full-time starting QB in the NFL.

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Since that is the case, it is possible that the Seahawks could still consider other options at QB for the 2022 season. Here are three possible QB candidates for Seattle:

Jimmy Garoppolo

If the Seahawks were a QB away from being a playoff contender, then maybe they would be able to overcome the hurdles necessary to acquire Jimmy G, not the least of which is that he currently plays for a division rival in the San Francisco 49ers.

Garoppolo is a bona fide starting QB in the league and is behind Trey Lance on San Francisco’s depth chart right now, so there would be a theoretical fit. Maybe if the Niners release Garoppolo, in order to get out from under the $24.2 million cap hit of his contract, the Seahawks would be prepared to swoop in to secure his services. But if a trade is required, that may not come too easily.

One reason for that is that a team that could still take on Garoppolo is the Cleveland Browns — who just jettisoned Mayfield — have a potential lengthy suspension awaiting Deshaun Watson and have plenty of cap space.

Sam Darnold

The prospect of playing second fiddle to Mayfield is probably not a dream come true for Darnold, a 25-year-old who was the third overall pick in the 2018 Draft but has struggled in four NFL seasons. If Darnold wants a chance to start after losing the training camp battle to Mayfield, Seattle could offer that to him.

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From Seattle’s perspective, Darnold might offer a little more potential than the QBs currently on their roster. Yet he also averaged 6.2 yards per pass attempt last season while throwing nine touchdowns and 13 interceptions. If Seattle is going to take Darnold, it would presumably have to be at very little to no cost.

Mason Rudolph

The Seahawks could try Cam Newton or Colin Kaepernick, too, but this is not really the ideal spot for an older QB.

For all of their roster flaws, the Seahawks do have quality wide receivers — led by D.K. Metcalf and Tyler Lockett — who might be able to help elevate the play of their QB. In this case, maybe consider Rudolph, who is now third on the Pittsburgh Steelers’ QB depth chart behind Mitch Trubisky and rookie Kenny Pickett. Rudolph was a third-round pick in 2018 and has started 10 games for the Steelers in his career, throwing a total of 16 touchdowns and 11 interceptions while averaging a very modest 6.2 yards per pass attempt.

The decision to take a chance on someone like Rudolph would be with an eye to the future. In a post Russell Wilson world, that’s where the Seahawks must focus. That means that they are probably not going to be contenders in 2022, so is the juice really going to be worth the squeeze when it comes to making marginal improvements at QB? Probably not.

The long-term play for Seattle may be to ride it out with Smith and Lock, letting nature take its course, and then pay close attention to the work of C.J. Stroud at Ohio State.

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