Those who wanted the Seahawks to replace Geno Smith: A word, please

Most of the mainstream media, social media, and even 12s were adamant that the Seahawks couldn’t go with Geno Smith. Could we have a word?

Come on, admit it. You were screaming that the Seahawks were doomed when they let Russell Wilson walk. You screamed even louder when the Hawks said they had their QB in camp. That it was perennial backup Geno Smith made some people lose their minds. Surely the Hawks would sign Baker Mayfield. Or failing that, Jimmy Garappolo. If I may, I’d like to have a word with you.

Now, I don’t claim that I knew Geno Smith would play this well. I can, however, attest that I thought he would be just fine as the Seahawks signal caller. Our own Michael Thompson expertly broke down why Smith would succeed this season. As for me, no, I didn’t predict Geno would lead the NFL in completion percentage. I didn’t think he’d lead the league in passer rating, either, but here we are.

Geno Smith is the quarterback the Seahawks need

But I did say, most emphatically, that the Seahawks absolutely did not need to sign Baker Mayfield. My reasoning was that at best, he’d add maybe two games to the Seattle win column. If he did that, he’d demand a huge contract for 2023. At that point, the Hawks might as well have kept Wilson in town. The exact same issue pertained to Jimmy Garappolo.

Who cares if Seattle goes 8-9 instead of 6-11? All that would do is drop the team’s draft order. That tiny improvement wouldn’t be sustainable, because the team wouldn’t keep the rental QB in either case.

So, let’s get to the heart of the issue. I’ll throw in the Hawks former QB, future Hall of Famer Russell Wilson. You know, the guy who was going to save Denver and take them to the Super Bowl, after he led Seattle to a 7-10 record. Okay, enough of that.

Let’s get mathy! A couple of notes: the touchdown and interception rates are based on attempts.  I’m sure you know YAC, but if not, it’s yards the receiver gained on their own after the catch. AY/Cmp is the average yards the ball traveled before the catch was made. Okay, 12s, guess who is who.

Player      Comp%      Yds/Rcp     TD%      INT%     Sack%    AY/Cmp    YAC avg    Pass Rating    QBR

A                  54.7            11.7          3.4       2.6        8.6         4.5              7.2              75.0                15.3

B                  77.3            10.2          4.5       1.5        4.3         6.4              3.7            108.0                72.4

C                  61.0              8.0           3.9       1.3        6.1         3.2              7.7              93.2                 33.2

D                  61.1             7.7           3.1        0.8        8.4        6.5               5.7              91.1                 44.9