THE CHEAP SEATS with STEVE CAMERON: Seahawks hanging on to Geno ... for now

Geno Smith will make some money today.

And help us all with a history lesson.

The Seahawks’ decision to keep their quarterback on the roster past this NFL deadline — thus guaranteeing his base salary of $12.7 million for 2024 — shows that they’re wise to a theory of both science and philosophy that dates back to the 14th century.

Really.

It’s not fully a coincidence, either.

We’re talking about the theory of “Occam’s razor,” and I’ll take the safe route here, quoting a respected publication (New Scientist) rather than trying to explain this myself.

I truly wanted to wing it on my own — I learned the principle from Jodie Foster and Matthew McConaughey in a movie called “Contact” — but getting it just slightly wrong, in a world full of readers with Google, would have been a journalistic car crash.

So.

Here’s the explanation, straight from New Scientist.

“Occam’s razor is a principle often attributed to 14th century friar William of Ockham.

“It states that if you have two competing ideas to explain the same phenomenon, you should prefer the simpler one.

“Many other people before and after the friar, including Albert Einstein and Isaac Newton, have come up with similar rules, but it is generally attributed to Ockham (the spelling comes from where he was born) because he used the principle with such razor-like logic.”

NOW, WE can add Seahawks GM John Schneider and new coach Mike Macdonald to the list that includes Einstein and Newton.

They’ll be pleased.

In fact, I’d have been really surprised if Occam’s razor did NOT apply when deciding how to handle the Geno Smith situation.

Paying the base contract and keeping Geno on board was not only the simplest solution at this point in the build-up to next season, it was almost the only one.

Yes, they could have decided that Drew Lock gave them a younger, more athletic QB who also knew the system (and played pretty well in a couple of starts last year).

Lock still could be in the picture.

He’s a free agent who signed a one-year, $4 million deal prior to last season, and now he has some tape for other teams to see.

Still, you have to imagine that if the Seahawks saw Lock as their best option until they can find THE guy somewhere down the road, Lock would be happy to return as the starter.

And Smith?

Well, he has another deadline coming up — March 18, when he’s entitled to a signing bonus of $9.7 million if he’s on the roster.

That totals $22.3 million when you count the base salary that he earns today.

In a world where ordinary QBs are getting $40 million and upwards, having Smith for something like half that amount is not a bad arrangement — whether he’s starting, backing up Lock or someone else, or even as bait for a trade.

When you put it together like that, it becomes obvious how Occam’s razor was a cinch.

At least for Geno’s base salary.

It was the simplest, and safest, way to go at this early point in Macdonald’s tenure.

MEANTIME, Seahawks coaches and scouts can get on the case of finding another QB1, assuming they find one available who has more appeal than Smith or Lock.

The glamor quarterbacks in this coming draft are all right at the top.

Seattle drafts 16th in the first round, and has no pick in the second round.

That’s not the ideal situation for trading up, say, for USC’s Caleb Williams at No. 1.

You’d be selling the farm, giving away so many draft choices (or valued players) that it could become almost impossible to keep building the rest of the roster.

However.

Macdonald and his offensive coordinator, Ryan Grubb, each have personal contacts with the two quarterbacks most often mentioned at No. 16.

Macdonald worked with Michigan’s J.J. McCarthy when he spent the 2021 season with Jim Harbaugh at Michigan.

Grubb has directly tutored UW’s Michael Penix Jr. as the Huskies OC the past two seasons.

If the Seahawks (especially quarterback guru Schneider) really like either of those two guys, they almost certainly can make it happen.

What does Schneider think?

Lol.

Call the CIA.

However the quarterback room shakes out, it’s logical that Smith will remain involved, at least for another season.

That’s not a cinch, exactly.

But Occam would keep Geno around.

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.”