3 Seahawks who could be surprise cuts after training camp

Surprise cut 2: Seahawks QB Geno Smith

It’s not an outrageous thought that Smith could go from potential starter to off the team. His contract is whack. He could make $3.5 million or $500,000. That is a massive difference. If Smith doesn’t make the team then Seattle saves a lot of money. And there is no reason for the Seahawks to be thinking that Smith is the long-term answer for starter at quarterback.

In fact, when Seattle re-signed Smith this offseason, they seemed to have set up his contract as one that is with the thought that Smith won’t be on the team or the team will have picked up a different quarterback (Baker Mayfield anyone?).

Smith is not a bad player. He filled in for three games in 2021 as the starter and wasn’t awful. To be honest, had Seattle trusted him a bit in his first two starts more, the Seahawks might have won those games early on instead of trying to win the games late. As far as raw statistics go, there wasn’t a huge difference between what Smith did in the games he started last year versus what Russell Wilson did.

I am not saying Smith is as good as Wilson by any means but Seattle was better when they ran the ball more and more efficiently and Wilson wants to throw too much.

All that said, 2022 isn’t going to be the season where Seattle finds a long-term option at quarterback unless Drew Lock wins the job and then is really good. Smith isn’t going to be the starter – maybe not even a part of the team – in 2023 so why waste 2022 with him as the starter? Just play Lock.