Seahawks answer at QB in 2023 might be Stanford’s Tanner McKee

The Seahawks have two first-round choices in the 2023 NFL draft. Unless a quarterback is great in 2022 (looking at you Drew Lock or Geno Smith), Seattle will need to find a QB in the draft.

Most pundits expect Seattle to have a top-ten pick in next year’s draft. This is because many people don’t think the Seahawks are going to be very good this coming season. But how ironic would it be if Seattle chose their quarterback of the future with a pick they got from the Denver Broncos in the Russell Wilson trade?

It is certainly possible that Denver isn’t great either. They play in likely the toughest division in the NFL, the AFC West. Denver could finish first in their division. Or last. Any loss for Denver is basically a win for Seattle in 2022 due to the Broncos draft pick value going up with each loss.

The 2023 NFL draft, unlike the very 2022 draft, will probably see a lot of quarterbacks taken in the first round. The Seahawks probably won’t be so bad, even in a worst-case scenario, that they have a top-five pick. Seattle still has a lot of talent on the roster even without Wilson or Bobby Wagner.

Tanner McKee could be the Seahawks quarterback of the future starting in 2023

The quarterback class in 2023 is a lot better than in 2022. So much so, that if Seattle chooses a quarterback in the first round as many assume they will, the Seahawks might not need to do that with the first of their two first-round choices.

That also doesn’t mean Seattle would be drafting a quarterback without talent because there will be many who are. That is where Stanford’s Tanner McKee comes in. McKee is likely to be taken outside of the top ten picks next draft but he is also potentially a high-quality long-term starter in the NFL.

Most of any issues McKee had in the second half of Stanford’s season in 2021 came from his offensive line being atrocious. McKee threw 4 touchdowns and 7 interceptions in his final five games last year but he was sacked 17 times in those games. McKee was constantly under pressure and forced to make errant throws as almost any QB would.

However, in McKee’s first five games of 2021, he threw 11 touchdowns and zero interceptions. But it also says quite a bit that even in his last game of last year and against a very good Notre Dame team, McKee was 20 of 25 for 172 yards with a touchdown and zero picks. McKee wasn’t the issue in Stanford’s demise last season, the team overall was.

McKee was consistently accurate – he completed 65.4 percent of his passes – and still only finished with 7 interceptions while throwing 315 passes on a 3-9 team. He also has great size at 6’6″ and 230 pounds. He isn’t overly fast but he is smart. McKee also has excellent arm stength.

But getting Tanner McKee with the Seahawks second first-round choice also means Seattle would get a high-quality player at another position of need as well, like cornerback. Seattle is building for the future at this point. McKee would give them a good quarterback for years but Seattle would also be able to fit the quarterback into a good team instead of a good quarterback on a bad team.