John Schneider on Seahawks drafting a QB: ‘We don’t know yet’
Mar 30, 2023, 4:27 PM | Updated: Apr 6, 2023, 2:20 pm
The big talk with the Seahawks remains the quarterback position.
Yes, they have re-signed both starter Geno Smith, a Pro Bowler in 2022, and backup Drew Lock this offseason, but speculation persists that they could pick a QB with either one of their two NFL Draft picks in the top 20 overall or four in the first two rounds.
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They have been plenty of differing opinions from NFL insiders on what the Seahawks could do, particularly with the No. 5 overall selection they own. The only person who could truly know if Seattle will draft a quarterback, though, is general manager John Schneider. And as he told Seattle Sports’ Wyman and Bob on Thursday during the weekly John Schneider Show, well, he doesn’t really know.
Not only that, but Schneider said he and the Seahawks were up front with both Smith and Lock about their QB curiosity before they signed them to new contracts.
“You know, our exit interviews with Geno and with Drew (after the 2022 season), we told both of those guys, ‘Hey, look, we haven’t picked up here (in the top five) in a long, long time, and there’s a chance – we can’t say we will or we won’t (draft a QB). But, you know, we’d love to have you guys both back, but we don’t know if we are going to take a quarterback or we’re not – we just don’t know yet,'” Schneider told hosts Dave Wyman and Bob Stelton. “So those guys were in the loop in terms of everything that we have going on with all these quarterback studies this year.”
The Seahawks have been making the rounds lately, attending the pro days of the top four QBs in the draft class: Ohio State C.J. Stroud, Alabama’s Bryce Young, Kentucky’s Will Levis and Florida’s Anthony Richardson. They’ve also been having fun with it, taking selfies with the players and sharing the pictures on the Seahawks’ social media accounts.
Hold it up high, @GVOaant. 🤳 pic.twitter.com/wmVgoUomId
— Seattle Seahawks (@Seahawks) March 30, 2023
Schneider said credit for that goes to Seattle’s new quarterbacks coach, Greg Olson.
“We actually started doing it because Greg Olson, when he was with the Raiders, they traveled around and saw some guys, so he’s like, ‘Hey, we gotta get a selfie.’ And then we just did it and gave it to the PR department and it took off from there.”
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And hey, if the Seahawks indeed do take a quarterback in the first round? Well, then their social media team won’t need to search too hard to find a picture.
The John Schneider Show airs at 4 p.m. each Thursday during Seattle Sports’ Wyman and Bob leading up to and including the first day of the NFL Draft on April 27. Find podcasts of each edition after the show at this link, and hear Thursday’s conversation in the player below.
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