National Football League

Russell Wilson hunt: Seahawks decline Commanders' offer

Published Mar. 4, 2022 10:53 p.m. ET

The Washington Commanders have made no secret that they are looking to upgrade their quarterback position ahead of the 2022 season.

Earlier this week at the NFL Scouting Combine, general manager Martin Mayhew publicly announced that the team was looking at options to improve at the position, and it appears that they have already begun swinging for the fences.

In fact, the Commanders have already made an offer to the Seattle Seahawks for their veteran quarterback Russell Wilson, according to NFL Network reporter Ian Rapoport.

"Earlier this week, they called the Seattle Seahawks about trading for Russell Wilson," Rapoport said. "I'm told they made an offer, a strong offer, involving multiple first-round picks."

Rapoport acknowledged that the discussion didn't go anywhere, and said that "Seattle really hasn't engaged at all on potential trades for Russell Wilson, but it shows you how deep and how strong the Commanders are willing to go for a potential quarterback."

Earlier this week at the combine, Seahawks coach Pete Carroll said the team had no interest in trading Wilson.

"At this time of year, there's conversations about everybody, and it's commonplace for us to have conversations with teams about all of the players, particularly marquee players," Carroll said. "That's not changed. It's been the same every year. It's the same.

"We have no intention of making any move there. But the conversations, [general manager] John [Schneider] has to field those, he always has. But nothing specific."

Will Russell Wilson finish his career with the Seahawks?

Colin Cowherd explains why Russ will not finish his career in Seattle and shares his top three ideal destinations for the quarterback.

While the Commanders might not have succeeded initially in landing Wilson, there is still plenty of time left this offseason to not only come back to the table with a new offer to Seattle, but to continue exploring all options to strengthen their starting quarterback position.

It seems the competition for Wilson will be fierce, as there have already been a variety of reports connecting him to other teams, including the Buccaneers and Eagles.

Addressing rumors connecting Russell Wilson to Eagles

Colin Cowherd addresses rumors of Seattle Seahawks and Philadelphia Eagles discussing a trade involving Russell Wilson.

Now the Commanders have also apparently joined the fray, and they're coming in hot.

"This year we are being very proactive, looking, searching," Commanders coach Ron Rivera said Tuesday. "We are trying to truly cover every base. … Every time you hear something, you're checking into it. And so we've got to do our work. We've got to do our due diligence."

If this news is any indication of how aggressive the Commanders are going to be going forward this offseason, the likelihood of Taylor Heinicke being their starting quarterback in 2022 appear to be slim.