Salk: 5 options to be the Seahawks’ next starting quarterback

The Seahawks are in a very different situation just before the league year starts as they no longer have a starting franchise quarterback.

Heaps: Who will start at QB for the Seahawks in 2022?

After 10 years as the starter in Seattle, Russell Wilson is on his way to Denver in exchange for five draft picks and three players, including quarterback Drew Lock, a 2019 second-round pick.

Will Lock be the next QB1 for the Seahawks? Will they pick someone early in next month’s draft? Will they trade for or sign someone who will ultimately beat Lock for the job?

“Who’s it gonna be? Who is the next quarterback of the Seattle Seahawks?” Mike Salk said Wednesday morning on Seattle Sports’ Mike Salk Show. “We’re gonna be talking about it a lot as we try to figure it out. We’ve got some options though, so today, we present options to be the next starting quarterback of the Seattle Seahawks ranked.”

Here’s who Salk thinks are five top candidates to be Seattle’s starter in 2022.

5. Deshaun Watson, Houston Texans

Watson is one of the top quarterbacks in football when he plays, but he didn’t play at all in 2021.

That’s because Watson is in the midst of a legal battle as he’s been accused of sexual misconduct by many massage therapists. Watson, it was ruled Friday by a grand jury, will not be charged criminally in 10 cases. He still faces roughly two dozen civil suits, however.

Salk isn’t on board with the idea of Watson, 26, being Wilson’s successor.

“I don’t like it. I’m uncomfortable with it. But I do think there’s a very realistic possibility that it happens,” he said. “And it signifies that the Seahawks are not truly rebuilding. It means they want to try to continue to win right now, they just want to do with a different quarterback. So we’ll see. I don’t know that I’m in favor of this. but I do think it’s a very real possibility.”

Deshaun Watson with a GROWN MAN TD 😤

(via @NFL )pic.twitter.com/33YvgjdHfL

— ESPN (@espn) January 4, 2020

4. Malik Willis, draft prospect

Since Pete Carroll and John Schneider came to Seattle in 2010, the Seahawks have used just two draft picks on quarterbacks.

One was a third-round pick on Wilson in 2012. The rest is history there. And the other was a seventh-round pick on backup Alex McGough in 2018.

If the Seahawks decide to use one of their top picks on a quarterback prospect this year, Salk has his eye on one player in particular.

“Malik Willis is probably the most intriguing option,” Salk said. “… Malik Willis is probably your best bet in this draft.”

An absolute BEAUTY of a throw from @LibertyFootball
QB @malikwillis 😮

📺: #NFLCombine on @nflnetwork pic.twitter.com/nBtecvoB2I

— NFL (@NFL) March 4, 2022

Willis is seen by many analysts as the top quarterback prospect in this year’s draft class. The Liberty star is a dual-threat quarterback who passed for 5,107 yards and 47 touchdowns to 18 interceptions and ran for 1,822 yards and 27 scores over the last two seasons.

“Super intriguing athletic guy who can run, can throw a little bit,” Salk said. “He went to you one of these smaller schools and liberty. So we’ve seen a lot of that Trey Lance style and try to figure out whether or not you can win with them. I’m not saying no, I don’t think it’s the direction I’d go but it’s definitely an interesting one.”

3. Marcus Mariota, free agent

Someone who thrived as a quarterback in the Pacific Northwest is Marcus Mariota, the former Oregon Heisman winner and No. 2 overall pick.

Mariota hasn’t been a full-time starter since the middle of 2019 when he was with the Tennessee Titans and he spent the last two years as the backup for the Las Vegas Raiders.

MARCUS MARIOTA TAKES IT HIMSELF! #RaiderNation

📺: #LVvsDAL on CBS
📱: NFL app pic.twitter.com/IIj0YevjSL

— NFL (@NFL) November 25, 2021

“This is the old-school veteran option just kind of biding your time and that’s Marcus Mariota, who I always liked,” Salk said. “I always thought he was going to be a Russell Wilson. I really thought he was gonna be good.”

Mariota is an unrestricted free agent and figures to be one of the top quarterbacks on the open market.

2. Gardner Minshew, Philadelphia Eagles

Speaking of quarterbacks who’ve thrived in the Pacific Northwest, former Jacksonville Jaguars starter and current Philadelphia Eagles backup Gardner Minshew, who starred at Washington State in 2018 before being a sixth-round pick in the 2019 draft.

Gardner Minshew put it on the money for his first TD pass as an Eagle 💰

(via @NFL)
pic.twitter.com/fsfQoxmnuG

— Bleacher Report (@BleacherReport) December 5, 2021

“I know Coug fans are gonna love this one, but I’m not opposed to it. Generally I laugh at the idea of bringing somebody home who played locally in college… but Gardner Minshew absolutely would be a great, younger version of Ryan Fitzpatrick,” Salk said. “You’re getting a ‘Fitzmagic’-type situation where he comes in. He’s fun, he’s exciting, you win a couple of games but he can’t hold it together long-term because he’s not that good, but he’s fun and he’s talented and he’s interesting. So I put Gardner Minshew on the list.

1. Tyler Huntley, Baltimore Ravens

And No. 1 on Salk’s list is someone we’ve covered on SeattleSports.com before, and that’s Baltimore Ravens backup quarterback Tyler Huntley, who started four games last season and played pretty well.

Would Tyler Huntley be a good fit for Seahawks if Russell Wilson leaves?

TYLER HUNTLEY. #RavensFlock

📺: #GBvsBAL on FOX
📱: NFL app pic.twitter.com/v9iAI6gaUS

— NFL (@NFL) December 20, 2021

But, Salk said, it’s unclear whether the Ravens are willing to trade him due to uncertainty around starter Lamar Jackson.

“I think Baltimore’s in a weird spot because it looks like Lamar Jackson wants to ride it all the way through, take the franchise tags and then see if he can make money in free agency,” he said. “So they may be unwilling (to trade Huntley). Plus (Jackson has) an injury history now and they may just feel like they need Tyler Huntley as a backup. But I’m intrigued. I think that he’s an interesting short-term option who has the possibility at least you want to see what he’s got to see whether or not he could be a longer-term kind of a player. He’s got the personality. got some athleticism, he can throw the ball a little bit. I like Tyler Huntley a lot.”

Listen to the full Ranked segment from Wednesday’s Mike Salk Show at this link or in the player below.

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

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