With Lock re-signed, are Seahawks out on drafting a QB in the 1st round?

All of last offseason, the Seahawks talked about how much they liked their two quarterbacks, even when those on the outside weren’t high on that position. A year later, both have signed new contracts to stay in Seattle.

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It started when 2022 Pro Bowler Geno Smith inked a three-year deal a few weeks ago to return as the Seahawks’ starter. And then late last week, his backup, Drew Lock, re-signed on a one-year deal.

With both Smith and Lock back in the fray, that position appears settled for the 2023 season. But the Seahawks have not one, but two first-round picks, including the No. 5 overall pick thanks to the Denver Broncos.

It was widely expected that Smith would return to Seattle, but since the Seahawks hold the No. 5 pick, there was some thought that they could use that selection to draft a young QB to learn under Smith and ultimately take over as the team’s next long-term starter down the road.

But with Lock back for next season, is drafting a quarterback at No. 5 out of the equation for the Seahawks? Former NFL QB Brock Huard tackled that question during the Blue 88 segment of Monday’s Brock and Salk on Seattle Sports.

Late last week, Huard said he thought Lock returning meant the Hawks wouldn’t take a quarterback early. And after hearing the details on Lock’s contract, he feels even more certain that’s the case.

“(He’s getting a) $1.75 million guaranteed signing bonus. He is going to be your backup quarterback,” Huard said. “I don’t think this roster at this stage is going to take (Florida quarterback prospect) Anthony Richardson at No. 5 to be the third-string quarterback.”

Huard sees a scenario where the Seahawks could draft a highly-rated quarterback early in next month’s draft, but that likely wouldn’t be in the first round.

“You want to take (Tennesee’s) Hendon Hooker and keep him on PUP (the physically unable to perform list) because he’s coming off his ACL (tear) and he can sit on that list for 6-8 weeks and you want to go about that? I can live with that,” he said. “At No. 5, I’m not buying it.”

Throughout the offseason, Seahawks head coach Pete Carroll and general manager John Schneider have said they’re open to the idea of drafting a quarterback at No. 5 overall. Huard thinks that may be a “leveraging” tactic.

“If I hear through different outlets, more of Pete and John talking about how much they love this QB class and if we see them at their pro days, you know, holding hands at Anthony Richardson’s Pro Day in Gainesville and everything else, that will just lead me further to believe that they are leveraging as much as they possibly can, if they want to leverage,” he said. “We’ll see how the pieces will all fall. But yep, at $1.75 million upon signing, Drew Lock, in my mind, is going to be your backup quarterback.”

Listen to the second hour of Monday’s Brock and Salk at this link or in the player below.

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