Anderson to Arizona, Whitehurst Rumored to Seattle
By author
The Arizona Cardinals have reportedly come to terms with quarterback Derek Anderson. The deal, reported this morning, is apparently for two years and worth around $7.25 million. Because of this acquisition, a lot of people expect the Seahawks to be front runners to obtain quarterback Charlie Whitehurst from the San Diego Chargers – the Cardinals had been the other team with reported interest in the former Clemson signal-caller.
Outside of his collegiate career, I don’t know a whole lot about Charlie Whitehurst. But his acquisition, combined with the departure of several other players, proves that management is prepared to go in a new direction.
The Seahawks have won nine games in two seasons and the front office is treating the team appropriately. No one’s job is safe in Seattle – that is how it should be following two seasons of mediocre football.
I’m okay with acquiring Charlie Whitehurst. He is still an unknown commodity to me, but everything I’m hearing about him hints at positive upside – Matt Schaub comes to mind, although Whitehurst isn’t quite as prominent. To sign Whitehurst, the Seahawks will have to compensate the Chargers with at least a third-round draft choice unless an alternative compensation package is agreed upon. The popular belief is the Seahawks will use the fourth-round pick obtained yesterday from Philadelphia to acquire Whitehurst.
With blind ignorance and homer optimism, I’m excited about Charlie Whitehurst. I don’t know why, but I have a couple of reasons for my ill-informed enthusiasm.
I wasn’t against bringing in Derek Anderson as a second- or third-string quarterback, but I had my reservations. I don’t want to put my hopes on a quarterback who Mike Holmgren was so quick to dispose of; if Holmgren does anything well – and we’re talking about a Hall of Famer, so there’s an endless list – it is identifying talent at the quarterback position. I was a proponent of Holmgren returning to Seattle as general manager only because he seemed to be the best guy to pick Matt Hasselbeck’s successor at quarterback.
Using that frame of thought, I don’t have any problems with Anderson winding up with a division rival. Arizona has a lot of weapons on offense, but they’ll be hard-pressed to find a quarterback who can match Kurt Warner’s production.
And speaking of the Arizona Cardinals, they were reportedly the “other” team interested in obtaining Charlie Whitehurst. I’m hoping they opted for Derek Anderson because of the compensation price, but the jury is still out. Regardless, I never have a problem beating a division rival to earn the services of a player. If Charlie Whitehurst somehow develops into the next great quarterback in the National Football League, there will be a huge shift in the NFC West in favor of the Seahawks.
As mentioned previously, however, I don’t know much about Charlie Whitehurst. And most of the preceding is simply speculation. I look forward to watching some non-collegiate film on Whitehurst; if the rumors are true, he’ll be in Seattle sooner than later.
Shaun Dolence: dolencesm@gmail.com
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