Seahawks Linked to Top Quarterback Prospect: Report

Seahawks Trade Rumors

Getty The Seahawks re-signed Tyler Lockett to a massive new deal.

The Seattle Seahawks made an interesting offseason stop as trade rumors involving Russell Wilson continue to heat up. Seahawks general manager John Schneider was one of the NFL executives expected to be in attendance at North Dakota State quarterback Trey Lance’s pro day on Friday, March 12, per NFL Network’s Tom Pelissero.

“Also set to watch Trey Lance today: Seahawks GM John Schneider … but don’t read too much into that,” Pelissero tweeted. “Schneider attends top QB workouts every year. And with no combine, private workouts, etc., this is the only chance for a live look at Lance, who has played one game in 14 months.”

Lance is projected to be a first-round selection with the potential to be picked inside the top-10. ESPN’s Todd McShay has Fields being selected by the Falcons with the No. 4 pick in his latest mock draft.

“The QB run is on, and Lance to Atlanta makes it four signal-callers in the first four picks — that has never happened,” McShay explained. “I like Lance’s field vision, pocket presence, arm strength and mobility. He needs time to learn and develop — he started only 17 games at North Dakota State — but Atlanta offers him the chance to do so with Matt Ryan under contract through 2023.”

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Russell Wilson Reportedly Viewed the Seahawks Attending Josh Allen’s Pro Day as an ‘Unwelcome Surprise’ in 2018

As Pelissero alluded to, the Seahawks attending Lance’s pro day does not mean they are trading Wilson or will move up to select the quarterback in the draft. Schneider’s attendance is not insignificant, especially given The Athletic’s recent report that Wilson viewed the team going to Josh Allen’s pro day in 2018 as an “unwelcome surprise.”

“Wilson’s camp saw the Seahawks’ interest in Allen as an unwelcome surprise,” The Athletic’s Michael-Shawn Dugar, Mike Sando and Jayson Jenks detailed. “Amid significant roster turnover — veterans Richard Sherman, Jimmy Graham, Michael Bennett, Cliff Avril and Kam Chancellor were either gone or on their way out — reports surfaced that Mark Rodgers, Wilson’s agent, called Schneider for clarification on the quarterback’s status.”

During Wilson’s tenure, the Seahawks have also been linked to other quarterbacks including Patrick Mahomes and Baker Mayfield. The Seahawks viewed things differently than Wilson and watching Allen’s workout was the team’s way of doing “due diligence”.

“And then there was Seahawks general manager John Schneider, whose team held the 18th pick and already had Wilson, a two-time Super Bowl quarterback who had just led the league in touchdown passes,” Dugar, Sando and Jenked noted. “For Schneider, it was simply due diligence, no different from Packers coach Mike McCarthy attending Sam Bradford’s pro day while Aaron Rodgers was entering his prime. Schneider had been with the Packers front office when Brett Favre was still their starter and Rodgers had unexpectedly fell in the first round, a lesson that stuck with him.”


Wilson’s Relationship with the Seahawks is ‘Frosty,’ per NFL Network’s Mike Silver

Lance is a physically-imposing quarterback prospect at 6’4″ and 226 pounds with a strong arm who can also hurt defenses with his legs. North Dakota State’s season was postponed as a result of COVID-19, so Lance was only able to play in one game in 2020.

Lance put up gaudy numbers in 2019 notching 2,786 passing yards, 28 touchdowns and zero interceptions while completing 66.9 percent of his passes. The quarterback also added 1,100 rushing yards and 14 touchdowns, more impressive numbers than most college running backs.

It is debatable whether Lance will be ready to start in the NFL in Week 1, but there is plenty for the Seahawks and other teams to like about him for the long-term. So far, there is no indication the Seahawks want to trade Wilson, but the team would have the advantage of potentially building a more complete roster around a quarterback on a rookie contract. NFL Network’s Mike Silver recently described the Seahawks’ relationship with Wilson as “frosty”.

“If you think that that [trade list] is normal for a player who wants to stay with his current team to put out publicly, you are vastly misreading the situation,” Silver said on NFL Now. “Doesn’t mean Russell Wilson couldn’t have a change of heart, but right now it is absolutely frosty and this is a fluid situation. I think we’ll have a lot more resolution by next week.”

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