Huard: Seahawks trading Wilson ‘biggest sports story’ in Seattle history

The Seahawks were reportedly part of a blockbuster deal on Tuesday, one that involved the franchise’s star quarterback.

Reports: Seahawks trading QB Russell Wilson to Denver Broncos

According to multiple reports, the Seahawks are sending Russell Wilson and a fourth-round pick to the Denver Broncos for three players, two first-round picks, two second-round picks and a fifth-round pick.

Russell Wilson Trade: Who Seahawks reportedly get from Denver

As you might imagine, it was quite the shock when the news came out.

What did former NFL quarterback Brock Huard think when he first heard the news?

“I think it’s fair to say without it being hyperbolic that this is the biggest sports story in the history of Seattle sports,” Huard told Seattle Sports’ Jake and Stacy on Tuesday.

Huard said that the Mariners’ trade of Ken Griffey Jr. is worth mentioning as he was a better baseball player than Wilson is a football player, but Wilson brought a championship to Seattle as a quarterback.

Huard also thinks it’s impossible to discuss the Seahawks’ reported trade of Wilson without noting that Green Bay Packers quarterback Aaron Rodgers is reportedly going to sign an extension that some believe could be worth nearly $50 million years. Rodgers is 38 while Wilson is 33.

“Are Seattle sports fans, as a Seahawk fan, are you willing to pay Russell Wilson $50 million a year for age 35-40? Because that’s what’s coming,” Huard said.

Huard said he talked to many people around the league after the combine who told him that Rodgers was set to completely reset the quarterback market in terms of annual money per year.

“$50 million a year for a guy at his age? And are you willing to do that with Russell Wilson?” Huard said.

Huard thinks that head coach Pete Carroll and general manager John Schneider, as well as team ownership led by Jody Allen, decided that taking a step back now was the right move.

“It had to be as they look at it, and they move ahead and John Schneider is here through 2027 and Pete’s here for three more years, and they looked ahead and said ‘OK, here we are today, but one year from now, where are we going to be? And will we be in a better place?'”

Huard compared it to the Mariners’ rebuild after the 2018 season when ownership and the front office had to make the hard decision to take a step back and undergo a rebuild.

“Between John, Pete, Jody and the rest of the Seahawks’ brass, this had to be for the years ahead,” Huard said. “Maybe not for 2022 but for the years ahead. This had to be the best decision that they felt in their minds that they needed to make.”

Stacy Rost asked Huard what the biggest thing the Seahawks are gambling/betting on is by making this trade. Huard said to look to Seattle’s reported trade partner in Denver for the answer to that.

“It’s the world that the Denver Broncos have lived in for the last six years, Stacy,” he said. “They have gone through more quarterbacks since Peyton Manning (retired after 2015) than any other franchise in the NFL, them and the New York Jets … That is by far the biggest risk when you let that guy, that franchise QB, walk out the door. You can ask the New York Jets, the Cleveland Browns, the Denver Broncos.”

Huard said that the split between the Seahawks and Wilson comes down to “the three P’s” – personal, professional and personnel.

In terms of it being personal, Huard said it’s hard for any quarterback to stay “arm in arm” with the coaching staff and front office for such a long period of time, especially as Wilson evolved from “the little third-round pick” to a “mogul.”

On the professional side, it stems from both sides “playing the game in the media” last offseason when Wilson voiced displeasure with the franchise.

And in terms of personnel, Huard says it’s clear the Seahawks are behind at least two teams in the NFC West in that department. Now, boosted by the draft picks they’re receiving from the Broncos, the Seahawks can try and address their roster.

“This is a personnel reboot to load up in a deep draft (that is) loaded with offensive lineman, pass rushers, receivers and corners (but) not quarterbacks. I don’t think there’s a (quarterback worth a) first rounder in my book in this draft,” Huard said. “But you load up your roster as you did in 2011, 2012, 2013, as you did with the 2010 draft where you had two first rounders. In this (trade) you got obviously No. 9 (and) No. 40 and No. 41. Those should be, in their estimation, (players the caliber of) Russell Okung, Bobby Wagner, Russell Wilson without the quarterback, but just from a pure talent standpoint.”

Listen to the full third hour of Tuesday’s Jake and Stacy at this link or in the player below.

Heaps: What’s OK and not OK about Seahawks trading Russell Wilson

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