Getty Seahawks general manager John Schneider (left) and head coach Pete Carroll appear to have won the Russell Wilson trade.
The Seattle Seahawks continue to show an interest in Kentucky quarterback Will Levis, a potential first-round pick in the 2023 NFL draft. Sports Illustrated’s Ross Dellenger reported that the Seahawks are one of 11 teams who were in attendance for the Kentucky-Ole Miss matchup on October 1, 2022.
“Eleven NFL scouts here in the press box to watch, most notably, UK QB Will Levis, including the Texans, Bills, Eagles, Jets, Dolphins, Raiders, Saints, Lions, Giants, Seahawks and Falcons,” Dellenger tweeted.
This marks at least two times Seattle has been reported to scout Kentucky. The Seahawks are most likely evaluating Levis among the other Kentucky prospects. Seattle director of college scouting Matt Berry was one of the NFL evaluators at the September 10 SEC showdown between Kentucky and Florida.
“A lot of NFL execs in Gainesville tonight to see Will Levis and Anthony Richardson,” The Athletic’s Dane Brugler said in a series of September 10 tweets. “The Giants reserved 3 spots for their brain trust: Joe Schoen, GM Tim McDonnell, Dir. of Player Personnel, Dennis Hickey, Asst. Dir. of Player Personnel. A few other notable evaluators expected to be in Gainesville for tonight’s QB showdown: Ray Agnew, Lions Asst. GM Matt Berry, Seahawks Dir. of College Scouting, Dan Morgan, Panthers Asst. GM Anthony Robinson, Falcons Dir. of College Scouting.”
Will Levis Is Drawing Comparisons to Josh Allen
There is still plenty of time before the 2023 draft, but Levis has emerged as the next quarterback in line after Alabama’s Bryce Young and Ohio State’s C.J. Stroud. Through the first four games, Levis has thrown for 1,185 yards, 10 touchdowns and four interceptions while completing 67.5% of his passes. After notching nine rushing touchdowns in 2021, Levis already has two TDs on the ground through the first month of the season.
Levis is drawing some comparisons to Bills quarterback Josh Allen, a player who the Seahawks showed an interest in prior to the 2018 draft. At 6’3″ and 232 pounds, Levis possesses similar physical characteristics as the Buffalo signal-caller, albeit a bit smaller.
“He just needs to continue to work on his pocket poise, his timing and his accuracy under pressure, but he’s one of the more intriguing quarterback prospects in this class,” an NFL personnel director told ESPN’s Chris Low for a September 28 feature. “Josh Allen had some inconsistencies with accuracy and timing as well, but we’ve seen how that has played out.
“As [Levis] gets more comfortable and better rhythm in this scheme, I feel like he will be playing even better football at the end of the season than what he’s putting on tape right now. He has all the physical traits and a lot of upside.”
Could Smith Still Be the Seahawks QB in 2023?
Despite the team’s slow start to the season, Seattle continues to gush about Geno Smith’s performance at quarterback. It remains to be seen whether Smith can show enough in 2022 for the Seahawks to consider keeping the veteran as their QB1 for next season. Seattle has two first-round picks in the upcoming draft, potentially presenting the team with an opportunity to move up, if necessary, in order to grab one of the top quarterbacks.
If the team continues on the same path at the position, Seattle would need to re-sign Smith in the offseason as the quarterback will be a free agent. Seahawks head coach Pete Carroll cited Smith as one of the reasons he still holds optimism that things will turn around this season.
“Heck yeah, [in the] next few weeks, I think we can make strides,” Carroll explained during a September 26 press conference. “These guys, they can’t help but learn and grow and they’re out there playing and all that, and so as we all put it together.
“If you like the Seahawks, how could you not be fired up about what Geno’s [Smith] done. He’s done a great job for us, and so that’s just one of the factors. But it’s a factor that was a question mark and now you can see him. So, I’m really fired up that.”