O’Neil: QB isn’t something Seahawks and other teams can just ‘figure out’

Under no circumstances should the Seahawks trade Russell Wilson without acquiring his replacement.

Heaps: Expect the ‘status quo’ from the Seahawks in 2021 free agency

I didn’t think this had to be said out loud, but apparently not everyone agrees. In fact there’s one person who thinks it’s silly to look at it that way. Ludicrous, more specifically. That’s the word Mike Florio of NBC Sports used in a segment on Monday in an effort to make a potential trade of Wilson to the Chicago Bears seem more viable than it actually is. The real fun starts at 13:18.

“I’ve seen others suggest,” Florio said to his co-host Chris Simms, “that the Seahawks can’t trade Russell Wilson to a team that can’t include as part of the package the quarterback who is plug-and-play into the Seattle offense. So the Bears don’t have anybody that they can trade back at quarterback so like they can’t be the team to which Russell Wilson is traded.

“That’s ludicrous to suggest that.”

It’s ludicrous to suggest that Seattle needs a quarterback in return for Wilson? Really?

“Anyone in the media that would suggest,” Florio continued, “that you must have answer the answer at quarterback that you trade back to the Seahawks doesn’t understand how football works.

“There are other places where they can get their quarterback.”

Hmmmm. Other places, huh. I mean, I guess it’s possible that you could take the assets you get in a trade for Wilson and flip those to acquire the quarterback, but even then, the Seahawks have to be dang sure about the specifics of that arrangement nailed down ahead of time.

To trade one of the five best quarterbacks in the league and then say you’ll figure out who replaces him down the road sounds an awful lot like organizational malpractice. Unless Florio had some specific thoughts on the matter.

“As you were suggesting they could sign Tyrod Taylor,” Florio said, referring to Phil Simms, his co-host.

Tyrod Taylor? The guy whose last two jobs have been to serve as placeholders while a first-round pick got ready first in Cleveland and then last season with the Chargers? Yeah, Taylor isn’t an answer at quarterback, he’s the guy you hire to buy time.

Other thoughts?

“They could evaluate any free agent that’s out there,” Florio said.

“Jameis Winston,” Simms suggested.

“Exactly,” Florio said.

The guy who was picked off 30 times with Tampa Bay in 2019? Turnovers make Pete Carroll break out in hives. Besides, Winston wasn’t even Drew Brees’ backup last year in New Orleans. I mean, say what you want about Taylor, at least he started games last season.

“They could pursue a trade of any guy that’s out there,” Florio said. “You don’t have to do it all in one transaction. You can take that 20th overall pick that the Bears send you and you can see how it falls together there.”

You mean put yourself in the exact same situation the Bears find themselves right now, Mike? Yeah, that sounds like something a smart franchise would do.

Oh wait, Florio had one more thought.

“Look, this happened back in 2017,” he said. “Who did they bring in for a visit, but not a tryout who was looking for a job at the time?”

Ohdearlord you better not bring up Colin Kaepernick.

“And who were they concerned about adding to the team at the time,” Florio continued, “because at the time there were guys in that locker room that resented Russell Wilson that didn’t think he was as good as he thinks he is.”

Ah man, he is talking about Kaepernick, isn’t he?

“Those guys are now gone, one of them is Richard Sherman,” Florio said, “what if they had added Colin Kaepernick then?”

Seriously. That’s one of the alternatives that makes you say it’s ludicrous for someone to suggest that Seattle can’t trade Wilson unless it gets a starting quarterback in return. Because if it comes down to it you can always sign Kaepernick.

“He’s a year older than Russell Wilson,” Florio said. “They saw what he can do, they had to defend against him. If you’re trying to find a replacement for Russell Wilson, would you rather have Colin Kaepernick or Nick Foles?”

And that, ladies and gentleman of the jury, is why you can not trade Wilson to another team without either getting a starting quarterback in return or at the very least knowing EXACTLY how you’re going to go about acquiring a starting quarterback. Because if you just deal Wilson for what you can to one of the teams he’ll approve a trade to, you might end up trying to sign a quarterback who hasn’t played an NFL game in four years because he is only one year older than Wilson and is not Nick Foles.

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