NFL Rumors: Seahawks QB shopping, Steelers big extension, and shocking Vikings cap casualty
By Kristen Wong
The Seahawks are looking for Geno Smith’s potential replacement, the Steelers absolutely adore this young linebacker, and the Vikings could make a surprise cut in the latest NFL rumors.
The NFL offseason wouldn’t be the NFL offseason without a plethora of rumors. You may have heard some of them already.
Aaron Rodgers, Derek Carr, and Jalen Ramsey currently dominate the rumor mill with news snippet after news snippet leaking out of the woodwork to the point where the NFL community has become numb to recent trivial developments. Rodgers came out of his four-day darkness retreat? Great. Let us know when he actually decides what he wants to do in 2023.
The Goliaths will always receive top coverage (just look at how many articles were written about Tom Brady’s retirement earlier this year), but the Davids of the NFL world deserve some attention, too.
That’s not to say these rumors are inconsequential. The following three rumors arguably carry the most intrigue in the league and should help keep any dedicated fan in the loop. Let’s take a look.
NFL Rumors: Uh oh Geno — Seahawks are seriously considering drafting a top QB in 2023
Start hypothesizing about those Seattle Seahawks No. 1 draft pick trades now if you haven’t already. Head coach Pete Carroll recently told reporters that would still “definitely consider” drafting an early-round quarterback even if the team re-signs Geno Smith this offseason.
At 32 years old, Smith clearly isn’t Seattle’s endgame as the organization would probably want to have a contingency plan in place for when Smith starts to decline.
The franchise already cut off its biggest chunk of dead weight in Russell Wilson, fleecing the Denver Broncos last offseason and starting a new era under Smith. The 2022 Comeback Player of the Year is negotiating a new deal in Seattle under very unique circumstances, as it’s not every day when a team’s quarterback breaks out in their 10th year in the league.
Smith is actually the first quarterback since Rich Gannon in 1999 to earn his first Pro Bowl nod in Year 10 or later. You’d be hard-pressed to distinguish him from even Kansas City Chiefs quarterback Patrick Mahomes just based on his 2022 stats alone.
But whereas Mahomes has his youth, talent, and the entire hopes and dreams of the Chiefs franchise on his side, Smith has the tenuous, wavering support of Pete Carroll. With the fifth overall pick in the 2023 NFL Draft, it’s not inconceivable to believe that the Seahawks will draft a quarterback if a top prospect like Bryce Young or C.J. Stroud falls to them.
Carroll didn’t specify how high he would take a quarterback, but for the purpose of speculation, let’s just say it could be with their first-round pick. Smith has been fairly warned.