4 potential landing spots for Seahawks quarterback Geno Smith
By Lee Vowell
The Atlanta Falcons could build the team around Geno Smith
The Falcons are a bit like the Seahawks. Atlanta might have a young quarterback in Desmond Ridder who could be OK, but he seems more like a backup than a full-time starter. For the Seahawks, if Geno Smith leaves, the only quarterback of any note who possibly could be brought back would be Drew Lock who is more likely a long-term backup. But Atlanta also has good cap space and good draft capital, much like Seattle.
Atlanta also plays in a division where it should be easier to catch up to the division leaders than a team that plays in the NFC West, for instance. No team in the NFC South had a winning record this year. Tom Brady might not return to the Buccaneers and while they won the division with an 8-9 record, they could be markedly worse in 2023. Carolina might be better but they don’t have much cap space and the Saints are stuck in cap hell even more.
The Falcons weren’t an awful team in 2022. They went 7-10 but with a young roster that should get better. With Geno Smith, Atlanta could conceivably be a playoff team in 2023 in the division they are in. Plus, the Falcons have decent draft capital for the next two years.
Smith could be a bridge between now and the Falcons’ future quarterback but Atlanta can afford to pay him well. Plus, Smith is only 32 years old and if he does well enough in the next couple of years, he could be QB1 in Atlanta for the next five seasons. This means Atlanta could build up the roster around the quarterback, just like the Seahawks should want to do.