THE CHEAP SEATS with STEVE CAMERON: Win now or wait? Seahawks have a lot on the line tonight

Tonight.

We’re on the clock.

And every media member — even those who don’t know if a football is pumped or stuffed — has tossed out a mock draft.

One writer called it “mock madness.”

Meanwhile …

There won’t be any such pussyfooting in today’s Cheap Seats.

I want the Seahawks to draft Florida quarterback Anthony Richardson — whatever might be necessary to get that done.

Period.

This isn’t just a selfish reporter play, either, just because the 20-year-old is a freakish athlete who should have been invented for a video game.

Richardson has the highest QB ceiling we’ve seen in a long, long time. He’s a generational talent and would set the Seahawks up at football’s most important position for the next decade.

You’ve probably read someplace that Richardson is 6-4, weighs 244 pounds and ran the 40-yard dash in 4.43 seconds at the NFL combine.

He can flick passes 70 yards with the effort you’d use to toss a gum wrapper into the wastebasket.

Richardson would be the first pick in this draft — instead of Alabama’s Bryce Young — if he’d played more than one season and completed more than 53 percent of his throws.

IN OTHER words, Anthony Richardson is not ready to step straight in and handle the complexities of an NFL offense.

That’s why teams like Carolina (No. 1), Houston (No. 2) and Indianapolis (No. 4) are likely to pass on him.

They have bad teams and no true QB1, not exactly situations where Richardson could sit a year and learn the game — as Patrick Mahomes did with veteran Alex Smith in Kansas City.

That might leave Seattle, with the fifth overall pick, in a perfect spot.

Richardson could be tutored by 33-year-old Geno Smith, who will remain the Hawks’ top gun for at least another year.

The one scary possibility in the way this draft might fall, and there are ALWAYS surprises, revolves around Arizona picking at No. 3.

The Cards have Kyler Murray so they don’t need a quarterback, but they do lack almost everything else — so they would listen if a QB-needy team further down the line wants to trade up and offer multiple picks.

Honestly, I’m so sure that Richardson is the right choice for Seattle, I believe Pete Carroll and GM John Schneider should tempt the Cards with some of their 10 picks in this draft — and maybe even a No. 1 in 2024 — just to jump up one spot and get their guy.

The only knocks on Richardson come from his lack of experience and production (in a new offense) at Florida.

But scouts all point to the fact that he wasn’t surrounded by a great deal of talent, and there were countless dropped passes.

Does he have an NFL arm?

The Athletic did a story in which several coordinators and coaches in the league critiqued all the top prospects, in exchange for anonymity.

Here’s what an offensive coordinator said about Richardson, after comparing his arm strength to

Mahomes and Buffalo’s Josh Allen …

“I would pay to watch those three guys throw every day. Pat’s mechanics are all over the place, but he’s just a baller. Josh has gotten better mechanically every year.

“Anthony has the most natural and most consistent whip I’ve seen. And he’s 20. He hasn’t even turned 21 yet. “I don’t see how this guy can’t do it.”

COULD I be disappointed with the Seahawks’ first pick tonight?

Definitely.

Most of tuned-in mock draft experts have Seattle selecting Georgia defensive tackle Jalen Carter at No. 5, and likely even another player on that side of the ball with their 20th overall pick.

Carroll has vivid memories of being overwhelmed by the 49ers’ powerhouse defensive front last season.

He’d like some bruisers of his own.

If they’ve found too many red flags with Carter, who didn’t always play full-speed in college (in addition to the car racing arrest and poor pro day), the Seahawks might look to edge rusher Tyree Wilson of Texas Tech — assuming he’s still available.

One of the zillion mock drafts, though, not only had the Hawks taking Richardson, it offered a unique reasoning behind the selection …

“People keep saying that Pete Carroll is 71 and wants to win immediately, but he’s the youngest 71 on the planet.

“Pete has a contract through 2025 and probably plans to coach beyond that.

“He wouldn’t be drafting Richardson for somebody else’s long-term future, he’d be taking him for his OWN team in 2024.”

Seriously …

I hope that logic is correct.

Richardson is going to be a star, potentially a Hall of Fame quarterback.

It would be amazing to see him learn the craft in Seattle.

This has been said many times, but the Seahawks aren’t likely to get another shot at a QB like this.

As Schneider put it: “They don’t grow on trees.”

Not like this gentleman, they don’t.

Email: scameron@cdapress.com

Steve Cameron’s “Cheap Seats” columns appear in The Press four times each week, normally Tuesday through Friday unless, you know, stuff happens.

Steve suggests you take his opinions in the spirit of a Jimmy Buffett song: “Breathe In, Breathe Out, Move On.”