Seattle Seahawks: Four biggest questions about the future of the franchise

Number three: Should the Seahawks trade Russell Wilson in the offseason?

Last offseason there was tons of speculation that Russell Wilson may want out of playing in Seattle. Since training camp started, though, the team and Wilson have disputed that speculation.

Wilson did say he was frustrated with getting hit too much. And nothing has likely changed that fact in 2021 as Wilson has been sacked 22 more times in eight games (he missed three with a finger injury). He does still hold on to the ball more and seems less capable of creating greatness in a storm of chaos as he did in earlier seasons, but the offensive line should take the brunt of the blame for Wilson being hit as much as he is.

Seattle tried to address the line issues this offseason by trading for guard Gabe Jackson. Jackson has actually been OK. It’s the rest of the line that has been bad. Left tackle Duane Brown is having his worst season since 2009 and has allowed 7 sacks already. Left guard Damien Lewis was made worse by switching him to the left side from the right this year. Center has been a problem no matter who has played the spot. And Brandon Shell is just a serviceable right tackle.

But now that Wilson has been injured and appears to be losing a step, his trade value is going down too. Before, maybe the Seahawks could get two first-round picks-plus for him. Now that seems less likely. Wilson is now 33 years old. That isn’t ancient anymore for a quarterback but it might be worse for a player like Wilson who needs his legs to help him be good and not just his arm, like Aaron Rodgers or Tom Brady.

Teams might not be as willing to get Wilson and give up a ton in return for him. Trading Wilson would mean a complete rebuild for the Seahawks and Seattle would need to get pieces back to help. I am not sure trading Wilson helps a true rebuild as he likely has less value on the market now.