Seattle Seahawks Get Their Man

The Seattle Seahawks are finally hitching their wagon to a young franchise quarterback.  Matt Flynn is coming to Seattle.  Flynn will be competing with incumbent starter Tarvaris Jackson to lead the young and talented Seahawks next year. Flynn inked a 3-year contract worth $26 million dollars, $10 million of which is guaranteed.

This is year 3 of Head Coach Pete Carroll and GM John Schneider’s regime in Seattle. The first year, the Seahawks traded for Charlie Whitehurst, who was a bust. Last year they signed Jackson to a two-year contract. Jackson played okay but you’re not going to win any championships with him under center.

Carroll’s motto is “Always compete” and the coach says there will be an open competition in camp for the starting job. The Seahawks gave Flynn $10 million dollars guaranteed, too much money to be a backup.  Expect Flynn to be the starter and Tavaris will backup if Flynn gets hurt or falls apart.

The last time the Seahawks made a move for a franchise quarterback, they found Matt Hasselbeck, who was the backup to former MVP Brett Favre in Green Bay.  Likewise, Flynn was the backup to MVP Aaron Rogers in Green Bay.  After being drafted in the seventh round in the 2008 NFL draft, Flynn signed a four-year rookie contract, which expired this year.

Flynn has been waiting for this moment his entire football career.  He has been a career back up since high school. He played for the LSU Tigers and redshirted his freshman year along with JaMarcus Russell.  Flynn was Russell’s backup until his senior year, when the Oakland Raiders drafted Russell with their first pick.  Flynn led the Tigers to the National Championship in 2008 during his senior year.

Seahawks GM John Schneider drafted Flynn when Schneider was an executive with the Packers in 2008. Schneider was hired as GM for the Seahawks two years later and kept Flynn on his radar.

This signing is a fair deal on both sides. The Seahawks are investing $26 million on an unproven quarterback and if Flynn does not live up to expectations the deal won’t cripple the franchise if they cut bait. If Flynn plays well, he will be able to sign the mega deal at age 29.

Let’s hope the Seahawks will have similar success with Flynn as they had with Hasselbeck with six playoff appearances including a trip to the Super Bowl.