This offseason, there have been no shortage of crazy trade proposals for Baltimore Ravens quarterback Lamar Jackson, but this one might take the cake.
Former Seattle Seahawks cornerback Richard Sherman recently posited that Jackson could land in Seattle if the Ravens go down a tag-and-trade route. What would Baltimore get in return? Geno Smith, and most likely a boatload of draft picks.
Both Jackson and Smith are slated to become unrestricted free agents this offseason, though Smith’s future is arguably clearer than Jackson’s right now.
Smith said after the Seahawks’ season ended that he wanted to finish his career in Seattle, and it appears as though that feeling is mutual. Smith and Seattle have reportedly already begun preliminary contract discussions — the same can’t be said for Lamar Jackson, who inches closer and closer to the franchise tag deadline with no extension in sight.
Richard Sherman suggested a quarterback swap between Seattle and Baltimore which would presumably include draft picks: the Ravens get Smith, the Seahawks get Jackson, and everybody comes out happy…. right?
Hear @RSherman_25 out on this Lamar Jackson-Geno Smith trade proposal pic.twitter.com/1bpR8go2Xe
— The Volume (@TheVolumeSports) January 16, 2023
Sherman said on his podcast:
"“What if a crazy scenario happened, Mitchell? And the Seattle Seahawks called the Baltimore Ravens and they said, ‘Hey, we wouldn’t pay Geno [Smith] top quarterback money.’ Which they may, and everything’ll be great.”“‘But we probably would for Lamar.’”"
A Lamar Jackson-Geno Smith trade proposal is highly unlikely to happen
On the simplest level, this quarterback swap makes sense. Both the Seahawks and Ravens have yet to extend their current quarterbacks, and from Seattle’s perspective, the team may want to go for a younger, more long-term option than Geno Smith.
Jackson would fit the bill, albeit his injury history could play a factor.
As for the Ravens, they would receive an adequate bridge quarterback in Smith as they continue to look for their signal-caller of the future. It’s worth noting that the Seahawks have the No. 5 overall pick in the 2023 draft, so a potential trade could involve Seattle forking over valuable draft capital to Baltimore — and we all know how much Eric DeCosta loves to hoard picks.
Smith’s quarterback skills shouldn’t be downplayed, either. The 32-year-old led the league in pass completion percentage (69.8 percent) and finished with 4,282 passing yards with 30 touchdowns against 11 interceptions.
In what was supposed to be Seattle’s rebuilding era, Smith ended 2022 with the first winning season of his career and led the Seahawks to the playoffs in his first season as a starter.
The Ravens will need to equip Smith with talented wideouts, but they were probably going to shore up their pass-catching corps this offseason anyway whether through the draft or free agency.
Remember that the Seahawks fleeced the Denver Broncos in last offseason’s Russell Wilson trade, so their front office clearly knows how to strike a deal.
In terms of the actual likelihood of a quarterback swap between Seattle and Baltimore? In our honest opinion, it’s pretty close to zero.