Former Seahawks Star KJ Wright Thinks Geno Smith Should Be Seattle’s Starting QB

The linebacker thinks the former backup quarterback needs to be the 2022 season starter.
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Former Seahawks linebacker KJ Wright offered his opinion on the ongoing quarterback discussion surrounding his former team.

After trading Russell Wilson to the Broncos this offseason, the Seahawks received Drew Lock in return. The team additionally already had Geno Smith on the roster, who has been a backup for Seattle since 2020.

On top of the current quarterback situation, the Seahawks also lead the Baker Mayfield trade rumor discussions as one of the main landing spots for the Browns quarterback. It’s still unknown if Seattle will pick up Mayfield or not.

With these three potential starting quarterbacks for the 2022 season, Wright has a clear answer for who he’d go with.

“I’ll tell you not Baker Mayfield,” Wright said on  I Am Athlete Tonight on SiriusXM per Profootball Talk. “Not Drew Lock. We ain’t gonna play those games. I’m team Geno all day.”

Wright played under Smith as a backup during the 2020 season. Although Smith only played in one game that season, Wright watched him in practices and realized what talent the quarterback has.

“Geno was good,” Wright said. “He was scout team quarterback. The dude has a cannon for an arm. He’s intellectual, you know, having those two-minute drills during practice throughout the week, the man can play. Just trust him, just trust Geno.”

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Smith saw more playing time in the 2021 season after Wilson was sidelined with a finger injury. Smith started in three out of four game appearances, finishing with 702 yards and five touchdowns.

Additionally, Wright doesn’t think the Seahawks need to have all these quarterbacks on the roster. Once the team picks a starter, they need to stick with them, he thinks.

“And what I said was whoever you decide to be your starting quarterback, the other guy has got to leave,” Wright said. “You cannot have both those guys in the building throughout the season. Because what’s gonna happen? Let’s say game three or four they’re not playing as well. What are the fans gonna do? ... ‘Put the backup in.’ And so to hell with all that, whoever’s the starting quarterback, the other guy, you’ve got to trade him or cut him.”

The Seahawks’ quarterback plan for the 2022 season remains up in the air.

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Madison Williams
MADISON WILLIAMS

Madison Williams is a staff writer on the Breaking and Trending News team at Sports Illustrated, where she specializes in tennis but covers a wide range of sports from a national perspective. Before joining SI in 2022, Williams worked at The Sporting News. Having graduated from Augustana College, she completed a master’s in sports media at Northwestern University. She is a dog mom and an avid reader.