February is speculation month in the NFL, and Colin Cowherd just topped Reggie Wayne.
A day after the former NFL star suggested the Seahawks tag-and-trade Frank Clark for Antonio Brown, the funniest name in sports radio dropped this rumor: Russell Wilson might want to play for the New York Giants.
Cowherd said sources from the entertainment world are talking about Ciara’s desire to move to New York, where she would have better exposure in her music career. And then Cowherd connected the dots, suggesting Wilson would want to accommodate his wife and might push to play for the Giants.
So, fans everywhere want to know: How much credence should we put into this rumor?
On the surface, we’d say it seems very improbable. Wilson has said he wants to play for only one team in his career and that he would love to play in Seattle for 20 years. And Pete Carroll surely does not want to finish his Seattle run without a good veteran quarterback — Wilson being his preferred guy.
Also, per Bob Condotta, Wilson has not told the Seahawks he wants to leave.
All of that said, we also know Wilson likes New York City (he engineered a minor-league trade to the Yankees, after all) and supports his wife in her career (he recently bought her masters from her record labels).
As Cowherd said, the Giants need a QB to replace Eli Manning and Wilson is entering the last year of his contract and some think Seattle will end up having to franchise him. This is the prime time to consider a trade, if Carroll and John Schneider were going to do it.
The Hawks could get a lot for Wilson — at least two first-round picks. But they also would need to find a veteran who could replace him, and that would be the tough part.
Carroll wants to win now, and the Hawks proved last season that they are on the cusp of doing it. To swap out quarterbacks would be no minor endeavor.
The top options this year would be Nick Foles, Teddy Bridgewater, Tyrod Taylor and Ryan Fitzpatrick. Foles has won a Super Bowl, so we know he’s capable. But could the others shepherd Seattle’s run-focused offense to the title game?
There is a subsection of fans who surely would love to see Wilson traded, to divest his big salary and get the picks. But a lot would have to happen for this to turn out well for the Seahawks, and there is no proof at this point that Wilson really would prefer to leave Seattle anyway.
For now, you have to chalk it up as a fun rumor during the NFL’s month of speculation.