Seahawks consider drafting QB but Geno Smith talks 'positive'

The Seattle Seahawks are working to re-sign Pro Bowl quarterback Geno Smith, but general manager John Schneider and coach Pete Carroll said that isn't stopping the team from taking a hard look at this year's quarterback class.

Schneider on Tuesday described contact talks with Smith, the 2022 NFL Comeback Player of the Year, as «positive» thus far.

It's no different from any other offseason for an organization that prides itself on leaving no stone unturned when it comes to player acquisition — with the notable caveat being that the Seahawks own the fifth overall pick in this year's draft via the Russell Wilson trade as well as their own first-rounder (No. 20 overall).

«We are totally connected to the quarterbacks that are coming out,» Carroll told reporters at the NFL scouting combine in Indianapolis. «This is a really huge opportunity for us. It's a rare opportunity. We've been drafting in the low 20s for such a long time; you just don't get the chance with these guys. So we're deeply involved with all that.»

The Seahawks haven't picked in the top five since they drafted linebacker Aaron Curry with the No. 4 selection in 2009, the year before Carroll and Schneider arrived. They've made the playoffs 10 times in 13 seasons since, which has meant routinely drafting later in the first round.

«A lot,» Schneider said when asked how much the Seahawks are looking at this year's quarterback class. «Every year, honestly, we really look at it a lot. Like I said earlier, we haven't picked fifth overall since we've been here. So yeah, I got out to see a lot of quarterbacks this year. It was pretty fun. But honestly, every year we've tried to do that, and we've tried to add quarterbacks.»

Smith is scheduled to become an unrestricted