With today’s signing of Jerome Baker, the Seahawks appear to have filled all the necessary starting positions on defense. This will give them great flexibility in the draft to add depth. In totality there’s only one glaring void at the moment — at left guard. That might be a strong indication of Seattle’s draft intentions and it’s something I looked at in yesterday’s seven round mock.

In Baker and Tyrel Dodson, the Seahawks have arguably upgraded at linebacker at a cheaper price. I asked Si Clancy, a friend and Dolphins fan, about Baker and what he’ll bring to Seattle:

As someone who has long called for resources to be shifted from linebacker and safety to the trenches, it’s encouraging to think Seattle’s biggest free agent investment (Leonard Williams) and their top draft pick (O-line or pass rusher) could be used up front. After years of seeing huge contracts and high draft picks spent on non-premium positions, this is refreshing.

Overall, as I keep saying, I think this has been a positive off-season. The Seahawks showed necessary restraint to avoid spending elite money on non-elite players. I think they’ve found some value. They kept Williams and it’ll be interesting to see what he does in Mike Macdonald’s system. I’m not a fan of moving from #78 to #102 for a backup quarterback — it feels like an overpay for a player I don’t believe will ever provide anything more than cheap insurance. I’m also not going to agonise over the deal — it is what it is.

However — there is one big question that remains. The most important question. One that has to be asked by fans and media alike.

What is the long term plan at quarterback?

Until the Seahawks find ‘the guy’ — they are going to be stuck in the murky middle of the NFL.

I appreciate this is the hardest problem to solve in the league. However, the Seahawks are now into their third off-season since the Russell Wilson trade and their most significant investment at the position beyond keeping Geno Smith is the Howell trade — a player John Schneider said isn’t even competing with Smith to start this year.

They had ammunition a year ago in picks #5, #20, #37 and #52 and didn’t come away with a quarterback. Now, they’ve traded away or diminished their stock making it difficult to trade up from #16. You have to wonder if the Howell trade is partly motivated by a growing expectation within the front office that they might not be able to get a quarterback they like this year either.

They can’t keep kicking the can down the road, in the hope that the next Patrick Mahomes or Josh Allen falls into their laps. Eventually, they’re going to have to identify a player with the tools to succeed and take a chance — either by trading up or just picking someone early.

Personally, I look at the Minnesota Vikings with a degree of envy. They’ve moved off Kirk Cousins, just as Seattle moved off Russell Wilson. Their reaction to doing so was to be quite aggressive in free agency and then make a ballsy trade to acquire an extra first round pick. They are going to trade up for a quarterback.

This feels pro-active. This feels like an attempt to break away from mediocrity. There’s no guarantee it’ll work but at least they’re taking a chance. The fans will be excited to see how this plays out and whether it’s successful or not — Minnesota isn’t settling.

It does feel like the Seahawks are risk-averse when it comes to investing in the most important position in football. They’ve had two highly productive, talent-adding drafts in 2022 and 2023 and all it has produced is two 9-8 seasons. Perhaps the new staff can change that? Hopefully so. But I tend to think eventually you need to do something like the Vikings are doing now. You can’t fear turning 9-8 into 5-12, otherwise you might never get to 13-4.

If you were to give me the choice of risking the two extreme scenarios or sticking in the middle-ground of the NFL — I’d pick the risky option every time.

Several contradicting decisions and comments are clashing. Schneider said a year ago they were determined to add extra 2024 stock because it was a deeper draft class. They’ve since turned three day-two picks into one with the Williams and Howell trades. Schneider constantly talks about wanting to draft quarterbacks — but he never does. While he never explicitly stated after the Wilson trade that drafting a replacement quarterback was priority #1 — it surely was at the forefront of his mind. Two years on, we’re no nearer to understanding how they’re going to do that.

Perhaps we’ll have the answer in a month and they’ll take Michael Penix Jr either at #16 or after moving down? I just feel less confident of that after the Howell move — it feels a little bit like they either sense Penix Jr won’t be there for them, might not be there for them or they’re just not interested. You can make the same argument for Spencer Rattler and Bo Nix if you wish. They currently don’t have a left guard on the roster, or much in the way of O-line depth. They haven’t added a new pass rusher. Are they going to take a quarterback at #16, after adding Howell, then wait 65 picks to select again?

A serious plan needs to be formed to get a top young quarterback with serious franchise potential. With the way they started trading away picks mid-season last year, it’s hard to make a case they had a serious plan for the 2024 draft. Instead, they started acting more like the Rams during their ‘F-those picks’ phase.

The question needs to keep being asked. How exactly are the Seahawks going to find ‘the guy’ who can lead this team to the promise land at the most important position in the sport? Because until they start taking chances to get that individual — I don’t think the Seahawks will break out of the middle-ground in this league. And no, adding a former fifth round pick, discarded by the Washington Commanders, who threw 21 interceptions last season, who the GM is already calling a backup, is not a serious plan to find ‘the guy’ for the future.

The Vikings are being brave and bold. It might work, it might not. But at least they’re trying.