Do Seahawks have to add a QB? Robert Turbin on what Carroll wants

All eyes are on what the Seahawks do – or don’t do – at quarterback this offseason, and someone who has a very good idea of what Seattle’s approach to that spot may be is former Hawks running back Robert Turbin.

Bump & Stacy: Which Seahawks coach is under the most pressure?

Turbin, a 2012 Seattle draft pick who serves as an analyst on the Seahawks Radio Network during the season, joined The Mike Salk Show on Seattle Sports 710 AM on Thursday and shared some of his insight into what the team’s quarterback situation.

One thing Salk wanted to know was “how serious” head coach Pete Carroll’s “always compete” mentality is.

“Oh, I mean, it’s serious. It’s not just something that he says. There are changes that are happening on a daily basis,” Turbin said. “Things can happen just like that.”

Turbin said that a player will be on the first team one day, and the next they could be running with the backups.

“And it’s just based on how you did in practice that day. (Coaches) go and they evaluate the film and say, ‘Hey, let’s see how this guy looks with the (first team).’ So it’s very competitive all the time,” he said. ” … (Carroll) wants to bring the best out of you as a player and help you reach your full potential, whatever that is, so that you can go out and play free.”

Because of that mentality, Salk is of the mind that the Seahawks “have to go out and make an effort” to bring in one of Baker Mayfield or Jimmy Garoppolo at quarterback rather than moving forward with Geno Smith and Drew Lock, both of whom are already on the roster.

“Because to go into the season with the two currently on your roster without at least giving it max effort to bring in another would not be truly to the essence of competing every day,” Salk said.

Replied Turbin: “No, I don’t agree with that. You don’t have to go out and do anything. You could be totally comfortable with what you’re seeing at practice right now and say, ‘You know what? We’re gonna let these two guys battle it out and see who’s gonna give us the best opportunity to win on Sundays.'”

According to Turbin, it’s possible that the Seahawks may have seen enough at practices and as they evaluate their film to think that they “feel pretty good” about Lock or Smith starting.

“Now, if there’s a sense of uncomfortability there, you could say, ‘I don’t think you guys are going to give us the absolute best chance to win’ and then you go out there and potentially make a play, but it has to make sense,” Turbin said. “There’s a lot more involved than saying, ‘Oh, we need a player to add to our competition.’ There’s salaries, there’s this, there’s that. So I don’t think they have to do anything as long as they’re comfortable with the two guys that they have on the roster.”

As the Seahawks move on to a quarterback not named Russell Wilson, what exactly is Carroll looking for from a starting quarterback?

“Just got to take care of the ball. Turnovers is a huge factor for Coach Carroll, winning the turnover ratio,” Turbin said. “So taking care of the ball and being able to move the chains on third down. It’s as simple as that. Can you make the play on third down when we need it? And can you not turn the ball over, period? And can you give us a chance to win?”

Something Wilson excelled at during his time with the Seahawks is throwing deep passes. Salk asked Turbin if that’s a need for Carroll.

“That’s not important,” he said.

The Seahawks have a goal each week for a minimum amount of “explosive plays” the offense should have, Turbin said, but those big plays don’t necessarily have to come from deep passes.

“You want to be able to have those explosive plays but those are going to come naturally in the game. And the Seahawks have enough playmakers in order to make that happen,” he said. “They’re going to re-sign DK (Metcalf), a playmaker who can make explosive plays. We’ve seen Tyler (Lockett) do it time and time again. We’ve seen Rashaad Penny with explosive runs, those 20-plus (yard) runs, right? And potentially (rookie) Ken Walker can do that in the backfield, as well. And there’s other guys on offense that have that ability, so you’re going to be able to create explosive plays with the guys that you have on your roster. It doesn’t always have to come from the quarterback. Let your guys, your skill players, go out there and make plays.”

Listen to the full conversation in the podcast from the second hour of Thursday’s Mike Salk Show at this link or in the player below.

Bumpus: Comparing four Seahawks QB options, there’s a clear choice

Follow @TheBGustafson