Seneca Wallace and the Future of QBs in Seattle

The real Seneca Wallace contract numbers are finally available. It looks like the initial reports got a few things correct. The deal is an extension for 3 more years with $5.4 million in new money. It would normally be reported as a 4-year, $6.2 million deal, and Adam Shefter didn't get the signing bonus right, but he was right about the $400,000 roster bonus next March.

Contract Details
$1.6 million signing bonus
2007: $595,000
2008: $605,000 (+ $400,000 roster bonus due 3/15)
2009: $1.5 million
2010: $1.5 million

Salary Cap Numbers
2007: $995,000
2008: $1.405 million
2009: $1.9 million
2010: $1.9 million

Actual compensation if cut following each year
2007: An extra $1.4 million for nothing
2008: $2.4 million for one more year
2009: $3.9 million for two more years ($1.95 million per year)
2010: $5.4 million for three more years ($1.8 million per year)

Those numbers basically cement Seneca Wallace at the #2 QB in Seattle as long as he stays on the roster. The most important thing to look at is his actual compensation. You don't pay a guy $2 million a year to be a #3 QB. It also leaves the team with relatively little money to spend on another QB, and Matt Hasselbeck will probably get a new deal following the 2009 season.

If he is still performing at a high level, then I doubt Hasselbeck will want to play out the final year of his contract for $5.75 million, especially with the money Trent Green is getting this year. Hasselbeck will only be 33 in 2009. Trent Green is 37.

The door is still open to bring in another veteran quarterback because the Seahawks can now move Seneca Wallace to another position without worrying that it might discourage him from re-signing with team. Depending on how things shake out with the receivers, Wallace could become primarily a receiver, but also the third string quarterback.

That scenario would require several conditions to be met. First, the team would need to bring in someone capable of being a legitimate #2 QB. David Greene's upper limit appears to be as a #2b option, which would only free up Wallace to play a handful of plays at receiver or return a few punts. With a legitimate #2 that the Seahawks felt comfortable starting if they had to, then Wallace could move to receiver full-time.

That only makes sense on a roster that really needs another receiver. That could very well be the case if Bobby Engram retires and D.J. Hackett isn't re-signed. But Deion Branch and Nate Burleson are both young and locked up. Ben Obomanu is an emerging talent. I wouldn't count out Courtney Taylor as a contributor in 2008 either. And Engram might have another season after this one, even if it is as the #5 receiver.

So, all of that (and my crystal ball) tells me that the Seahawks will most likely go after another 3rd or 4th round QB in the draft. Maybe in 2008, but maybe not until 2009. It could be one more year of David Greene, especially if Hackett re-signs, Engram doesn't retire, or Courtney Taylor looks like Ben Obomanu, the sequel. Greene playing like he did last preseason instead of like he did against Green Bay wouldn't hurt either.

That leaves Seneca Wallace as the #2 QB behind Matt Hasselbeck until the team can draft a QB and develop that guy into a legitimate #2. Then Wallace could move to be a full-time receiver, while also holding down the #3 QB spot. If you assume Hasselbeck and Wallace stay with the Seahawks after 2010, then that could be a good situation for the next five or six years.

Fast forward to 2013. Once Hasselbeck retires, the young QB becomes the starter, and Wallace could always move back to the #2 QB spot, and would be an experienced veteran at that point. He would also be 33 years old and could extend his career several years as a backup QB.

If everything plays out like that, then I should start a psychic hotline. The specifics of what actually happens aren't that important, but those musings are illustrative of the options the Seahawks have on the table. The next QB to stick in Seattle will most likely be a 3rd or 4th rounder taken in 2008 or 2009. It doesn't make much sense to use a higher pick if the team feels Hasselbeck will be around for at least another 3 years, and too many things need to happen for it to make sense to bring in another #2 and move Wallace to receiver, at least until after 2008.