Did the Seahawks get enough from the Broncos for Russell Wilson?

Russell Wilson is no longer a member of the Seahawks, and a new era of football in Seattle is set to begin.

Reports: Seahawks trading QB Russell Wilson to Denver Broncos

On Tuesday, multiple reports surfaced that the Seahawks are trading Wilson to the Denver Broncos.

The full details of the trade? Wilson and a 2022 fourth-round pick head to Denver while quarterback Drew Lock, tight end Noah Fant, defensive lineman Shelby Harris, two first-round picks, two second-round picks and a fifth-round pick come to Seattle.

Russell Wilson Trade: Who Seahawks reportedly get from Denver

The Seahawks will get one first- and second-round pick from Denver for both next month’s draft and the 2023 draft. For this year, the Seahawks now hold the No. 9 pick in the first round and picks 40 and 41 in the second round after the reported deal.

Looking at the deal, did the Seahawks get enough in return for Wilson? Here’s what former NFL quarterbacks Brock Huard and Jake Heaps as well as Stacy Rost had to say on Tuesday’s Jake and Stacy on Seattle Sports.

Brock Huard

“I would have preferred one more first rounder. I would have preferred another first,” Huard said.

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

Lock is well known as he’s a quarterback who was a high draft pick and has underachieved, but what does Huard think of Harris and Fant?

“Shelby Harris is a good player and he’s an upgrade on (the interior of the defensive line),” he said. “… Noah Fant was a was a first-round pick that’s under-achieved and (Denver) asked him to block and be something he’s not. He is a very dynamic, talented young player.”

The big thing with this deal, Huard said, is what the Seahawks do with the No. 9 pick in next month’s draft.

“No. 9 in this draft should be a cornerstone franchise offensive tackle, pass rusher or corner,” he said. “One of those three should be in the fold at No. 9.”

While that No. 9 pick is a great addition for the Seahawks, Huard still wishes they could have gotten one more first rounder from the Broncos.

“But that wasn’t in the cards because I’m sure (Broncos general manager) George Paton and Denver said, ‘Hey, come on, John. Come on, Pete. I’m giving you a good haul back to give you your total reboot. And I’ve got a guy that’s gonna make $36 million this year and then I’ve got to pay $50 million down the road. I can’t give up three first rounders, I’ll give you these two.’ And ultimately, that was good enough for the Seahawks to say yes.”

Listen to Huard’s full conversation with Jake and Stacy in the player below.

Stacy Rost

Rost, like Huard, thinks that getting two first-round picks wasn’t enough, even with the other pieces Seattle is set to receive.

“Did they get enough back in return? For me, no,” she said. “It feels like it should have been three first rounders.”

Rost thinks Lock didn’t need to be included in the deal despite him being at least a stopgap at starting quarterback for the Seahawks.

“I could do without Drew Lock (even though) it means you won’t have a quarterback,” she said. “I don’t know how I feel Noah Fant. No offense, I’m not sure how I feel about the veterans that they picked up. Maybe I’ll change my mind. But I assumed no matter what that a trade of Russell Wilson, particularly with Aaron Rodgers off the table, would be for three first rounders.”

Jake Heaps

Heaps said looking at the deal is “very emotional” because of what Wilson meant and symbolized for the Seahawks as a franchise quarterback.

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

“And overall what you’re getting back, you want to see premier talent, right?” Heaps said. “Noah Fant is a very good tight end, a very good, young tight end. But you need a quarterback to be able to get him the football, you need a quarterback to be able to spread the ball around and to be able to make that that piece worthwhile. I don’t believe that guy is Drew Lock, to be quite frank with you. But they get him in compensation to have a quarterback on the roster that will compete for the starting job heading into 2022.”

With Harris, Heaps called the veteran defensive lineman a “nice piece.”

“But he’s not a premier talent,” Heaps said. “The premier talent that you’re hoping to get is gonna come from pick No. 9 that the Seattle Seahawks now have because of the trade with Denver. So that is the one opportunity that you have to get a premier talent on your team. Whereas some of these other players, they’re just pieces, they’re pieces to your roster. And that’s that’s why, in my opinion, it feels like this was not a this was not fair compensation back overall for Russell Wilson.”

Heaps, like Huard and Rost, thinks three first-round picks should have been “the starting point.”

“I much rather would have had them go after picks than player,” he said. “I want picks, I want picks for a rebuild and to have players under player control easier money rather than a Noah Fant who, by the way, is going to be coming up on wanting a contract extension very soon. So these are the types of moves that end up happening here that they’re not pieces that are going to come at a low cost for a ton of years, whereas you continue to add more draft capital to your repertoire that then you can use to facilitate trades … (or) get more premier talent in the draft. So anyways, that is why I feel like this is not enough compensation for Russell Wilson.”

During Tuesday’s show, Heaps said a source told him that Wilson, who had to waive his no-trade clause to make a deal happen, turned down trades to the Washington Commanders and the Philadelphia Eagles. Albert Breer of The MMQB reported that the Seahawks wanted Wilson out of the NFC if they were to move him.

“Those were very real, substantial offers that they were mulling over and considering,” Heaps said. “So I also believe that there’s a little bit of spin that happens afterwards with these deals that get done to explain some of the reasons why this happened. For Seattle, yeah, it’s great. You get Russell Wilson out of the NFC. You don’t have to play him, you don’t have to worry about the Seahawks meeting Russell Wilson in the playoffs and losing and what the optics could look like with that picture. But you are going to get Russell Wilson returning. He is going to he is going to come and play the Seattle Seahawks (in 2022).”

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

Salk: Whether Hawks or Wilson initiated deal, someone must ‘own it’

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