Seahawks QB Geno Smith bemoans his insultingly low Madden rating

To only get a 60 rating after how sharp he looked in his three starts last season is frankly insulting.

The player ratings for this year’s version of Madden are out, and some folks are not too happy about it. Seahawks free safety Quandre Diggs went on a brief Twitter rant earlier this week about only getting an 84 overall rating despite playing his position as well as anyone over the last two and a half years. Tight end Noah Fant also seemed peeved at getting an 82 overall.

While the ratings for both Diggs and Fant are too low, they’re nowhere near as off-base as the one quarterback Geno Smith got from EA Sports this year. Smith only earned a 60 overall rating for Madden 23, which is lower than that of Drew Lock (66) as well as third-stringer Jacob Eason (62). Smith’s rating ranks him at No. 65 at his position, tied with the likes of Blaine Gabbert and Easton Stick.

Yesterday Smith took to Twitter to call out Madden – tagging Ochocinco, who was part of the team that produced the ratings this year.

Usually players complaining about their Madden rating is a turnoff, but Smith has a very legitimate gripe. To only get a 60 rating after how sharp he looked in his three starts last season is frankly insulting. We were anticipating Smith to be somewhere in the 69-70 range, which would be much more appropriate for his skillset.

Unfortunately, once an NFL player has a reputation it can be difficult to shed, even to people who evaluate their performance for a living. Our guess is that whoever did the QB ratings didn’t watch Geno’s 3.25 games.

The only way for Smith to prove his doubters wrong is to win the QB1 competition and ball out as Seattle’s starter this year.

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Seahawks announce they’ve cut undrafted rookie QB Levi Lewis

That leaves three quarterbacks on the roster.

The Seattle Seahawks announced they have waived rookie quarterback Levi Lewis, who went undrafted after playing his college ball at Louisiana-Lafayette. That leaves three quarterbacks on the roster: Geno Smith, Drew Lock and Washington’s Jacob Eason.

Seattle’s roster currently stands at 90 players – but they have room for one more thanks to the exemption they get for linebacker Aaron Donkor.

No corresponding move has been made as of yet to fill that spot. Some of the free agents they’ve brought in recently include Damontae Kazee and Mario Addison. However, both have already signed with other teams.

Their most recent visitor was former Bengals and Vikings safety George Iloka, who worked out for the team on Thursday.

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Geno Smith has current edge in Seahawks quarterback competition

Geno Smith, who has backed up Russell Wilson for the last three years, has the current edge in the Seattle Seahawks quarterback competition.

The Seattle Seahawks just wrapped up their rookie minicamp but that doesn’t mean coach Pete Carroll hasn’t had his eyes on the veterans as well. Carroll was asked Sunday what he thought about the quarterback competition so far.

That they are really focused to show well,” Carroll told reporters. “These guys understand what’s at stake, and the comp of it all. And so they were really tuned in. They’re giving everything they’ve got, everything they were doing, from the communication part of it, they’re studying extra, they’re getting in early they’re trying to make sure that they put themselves in the best position.”

And for logical reasons, it looks like one quarterback has the edge so far, returning signal-caller Geno Smith, who backed up Russell Wilson for the last three seasons.

“It’s really obvious, Geno has come back,” Carroll continued. “Like we said, he has so much command of what we’re doing, that he just automatically is ahead. He’s trying to ride that and build on that. I’m proud of the way he’s taking to it.

To be fair to Drew Lock, the offseason has really just begun, leaving him plenty of time to pull ahead in the race.

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NFL draft: 2022 rookie QB class ‘raised well’ regardless of offensive style

Seattle Seahawks coach Pete Carroll thinks this year’s quarterback class has been “raised well” regardless of the college style of offense.

The Seattle Seahawks have three quarterbacks on the roster heading into the 2022 NFL draft – returning veteran Geno Smith, former Bronco Drew Lock and Jacob Eason, who was claimed off waivers last October.  Regardless, coach Pete Carroll and general manager John Schneider are still taking a good, hard look at this year’s quarterback class.

Guys have been really impressive,” Carroll said last week during his pre-draft press conference. “They’re raised well and regardless of the style of the offense, these guys are prepared for this time. They’ve held their own, John’s guys and our coaches have had numerous meetings with guys, and just trying to dig in and figure out where they are, are there limitations in their background?”

Carroll obviously wasn’t going to name names or reveal the programs, but he isn’t ruling anyone out based on the style of offense played in college.

“No, we do appreciate the fact that when guys have been under center, and some guys have never been under center, that’s a little bit of a setback, but it really transitions really quickly for the most part,” Carroll said. “And that’s really not a big factor . . . The guys are ‘repped’ out and they know what they need to know. They’re ready for the next challenge and all of that, it’s pretty obvious.

What will Seattle do at No. 9 overall? The NFL draft kicks off this Thursday evening at 5:00 p.m. PT.

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Seahawks: 5 potential quarterback trade scenarios during the 2022 NFL draft

Let’s take a look at a few trade scenarios the team could consider if they’re interested in adding a veteran with a better résumé than Geno Smith.

If the 2022 NFL season were to begin today, the Seahawks would most likely be starting Geno Smith at quarterback. While there are many more talented QBs around the league, Smith’s understanding of their offense is as good as anyone outside Russell Wilson after serving as his backup the last three seasons. Geno also did pretty well in his three starts last year – certainly good enough to start over Drew Lock or any rookie the team might select in the draft later this week.

That said, these Seahawks have enjoyed an extremely rare run of success at this spot. Since 2001 when Matt Hasselbeck took over as QB1, Seattle has had either a strong starter or a Pro-Bowler at the game’s most important position for all but one one year. Only the Packers and the Patriots can claim a better QB-run during that time. So, it’s possible that the fanbase and the front office won’t have the patience for a young prospect to develop into a viable franchise quarterback some day.

With that in mind, let’s take a look at a few trade scenarios the team could consider if they’re interested in adding a veteran with a better résumé than Geno. Here are five we came up with.

Seahawks QBs Geno Smith, Drew Lock, Jacob Eason begin offseason work

For better or worse, right now this is Geno Smith’s team.

As the offseason program begins, the Seattle Seahawks have three quarterbacks currently on their roster and one Russell Wilson-shaped hole at the top of their depth chart at the game’s most important position.

The rest of them showed up for work this week and began throwing in preparation for the 2022 season. Here’s a look at Geno Smith, Drew Lock and Jacob Eason working out and kidding around at the Virginia Mason Athletic Center in gorgeous Renton, WA.

The big question is if the front office will add a fourth quarterback to the mix in next week’s NFL draft. Re-signing Smith to a one-year deal a few days ago could be a sign that they’re not as high on the 2022 QB class as most people think they are.

For better or worse, right now this is Geno’s team. Even if they do draft a rookie, he’s our projected starter for Week 1.

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Seahawks likely won’t draft a QB in 2022 after re-signing Geno Smith

This offseason has demonstrated that you can’t rule out any scenario with 100% certainty, but going forward fans should expect the Seahawks not to take a QB this year.

The Seahawks are re-signing quarterback Geno Smith, which makes him the favorite to be their starter at the outset of the 2022 season. According to Bob Condotta at the Seattle Times, Smith’s contract is a one-year deal with a base salary somewhere between $3.5 million and $4 million with incentives that can push the total up to $7 million.

That’s a big raise for Smith, who earned it with three strong starts during the 2021 season while Russell Wilson was out with his finger injury. While it’s not a huge commitment for a quarterback, this development does likely mean that the Seahawks won’t be using one of their draft picks this year on a quarterback.

For one thing, this QB class is supposed to be pretty weak compared to recent drafts – and especially when compared with the 2023 group. The only prospect that was really worth considering is Liberty’s Malik Willis, whose game has at least a passing resemblance to Wilson’s when he’s at his best. However, the great showing Willis put on at his pro day likely put him out of reach for Seattle with the No. 9 overall pick.

This offseason has demonstrated that you can’t rule out any scenario with 100% certainty, but going forward fans should expect the Seahawks not to take a QB this year.

Looking ahead, their depth chart at quarterback should be:

QB1: Geno Smith
QB2: Drew Lock
QB3: Jacob Eason

To put it kindly, Lock hasn’t developed into a reliable starter as of yet but it makes more sense to give him the opportunity if Smith either fails or gets injured rather than use draft capital on a rookie QB. Only Eason is under contract beyond next season, so unless one of them turns in a truly-impressive ’22 campaign odds are this team will be shooting to draft its next franchise quarterback in 2023.

Smith re-signing also makes it highly unlikely that the team will attempt to trade for another QB already in the league like the Browns’ Baker Mayfield or Gardner Minshew of the Eagles. Free agent wild cards like Cam Newton and Colin Kaepernick are also now off the table.

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‘I feel disrespected’: Baker Mayfield sounds off on Cleveland Browns quarterback saga

Baker Mayfield shares that he feels disrespected by the Cleveland Browns in their pursuit of Deshaun Watson.

Former Oklahoma Sooners QB [autotag]Baker Mayfield[/autotag] has been the talk of the sports world this offseason, but not because of anything he did on the football field for his current team. After a season in which he dealt with a torn labrum in his shoulder, Mayfield came under fire for the Browns falling short of the playoffs, when in reality, he probably shouldn’t have played.

Throughout the 2021 season and shortly thereafter, there appeared to be mutual interest in coming to an agreement on a long-term contract. Then the Browns dipped their toe in the Deshaun Watson saga. After it appeared Watson had declined to go to Cleveland, the Browns stepped up their contract offer and made the splash to trade for the controversial quarterback from the Houston Texans.

When the rumors surfaced of the Browns’ interest in Watson, Mayfield penned what looked and sounded like a good-bye letter to the city of Cleveland, a place that hadn’t seen a playoff win in more than two decades and a fanbase that embraced Mayfield’s confident, bordering on cocky attitude.

With the trade finalized, fans and analysts alike began to wonder what would become of the former No. 1 overall pick. Several teams, like the Seattle Seahawks and Carolina Panthers, have popped up with rumored interest in the Sooners’ Heisman winning quarterback, but the Browns haven’t revealed concrete plans to trade their once-franchise quarterback.

With weeks to contemplate the move, Baker Mayfield finally broke his silence on the Cleveland Browns and their addition of Deshaun Watson when he appeared Michael Seander’s podcast Ya Never Know: know what I mean?

 

The interview has more content than you would think at first glance. Baker starts his story with how things ended at Texas Tech and how things began for him at Oklahoma.

Baker didn’t hold back in this interview. This is the clip that has gotten everyone’s attention:

Baker said that he feels disrespected by the Browns. “I feel disrespected, 100 percent,” said Baker. “I was told one thing and they completely did another.”

Baker went on to talk about the coaching situations he’s dealt with since being drafted.

“I’ve had four different head coaches in four years, a bunch of different coordinators,” said Baker. “(You) talk about the highs? They always come back.”

The Deshaun Watson situation still hasn’t reached its conclusion and the Browns currently don’t have an answer on if their new QB will be suspended or not to start the 2022 regular season. Mayfield is still on the Browns roster and may be asked to fill in for Watson should NFL Commissioner Roger Goodell suspend him.

Mayfield requested a trade back in March.

He underwent surgery back in January to repair his left labrum and was scheduled to begin “light throwing” this month. With the injury and his nearly $19 million cap hit for 2022, teams have been reluctant to trade for him to this point.

However, with the draft approaching, Baker could get dealt by the Browns during draft week, per NFL Network’s Ian Rapoport.

Expect the Browns to send Baker out of the conference. The Seattle Seahawks seem to be the current favorites after trading Russell Wilson. Drew Lock, Jacob Eason, and Geno Smith are the only QBs on Seattle’s roster at the moment.

Baker Mayfield will be in Norman on April 23 for Oklahoma’s spring game, when his statue will be revealed in Heisman Park on the University of Oklahoma’s campus.

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Seahawks starting quarterback opening ‘a very competitive opportunity’

Seattle Seahawks coach Pete Carroll is planning to make the team’s starting quarterback opening “a very competitive opportunity.”

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The Seattle Seahawks will have a very important position group to watch this summer at training camp. Now that Russell Wilson has been traded to the Denver Broncos, the Seahawks must decide who will be the starting quarterback heading into the 2022 NFL season.

Seattle did acquire quarterback Drew Lock in the Wilson trade and also has Jacob Eason on the roster, but coach Pete Carroll wants to see the battle for starter play out on the field.

“I’m going to look at this thing very much like we did years ago and structure it so everybody gets a great shot at it as best we can,” Carroll said this week from the league meetings in Florida. “That’s what competition is all about. I’ve got to give them the opportunity by presenting it.”

Of course, Carroll is referring to the three-way battle in the summer of 2012 between Wilson, Tarvaris Jackson and Matt Flynn. But for that to happen, the Seahawks will need to add another quarterback to the mix, either through free agency with a familiar face like Geno Smith or with a rookie selected in the NFL draft this April.

“If it all gets set up like it should happen, it’s going to be a very competitive opportunity,” Carroll said.

For now, all Seahawks fans can do is wait.

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Seahawks legend Jon Ryan volunteers his services at quarterback

Ryan is of course the greatest and most clutch performer in playoff history.

The Seahawks need a new quarterback after agreeing to trade Russell Wilson to the Broncos. At the moment their best options to start Week 1 of the 2022 season are Geno Smith and Drew Lock – a far from ideal situation.

One Seattle legend is volunteering his services. Here’s what former Seahawks punter Jon Ryan shared on Twitter last night.

Ryan is of course the greatest and most clutch performer in playoff-franchise history, having a perfect passer rating at 158.3 and the most epic touchdown of all time.

In the regular season, Ryan completed three of four passes, totaling 54 yards and a 116.7 passer rating.

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