THE CHEAP SEATS with STEVE CAMERON: The problem with the Seahawks and no clear answer

Maybe it’s all the playoff games on TV.

Or maybe you’re hooked all year ‘round, like, 24/7.

Whatever, here we are at the end of January, less than a month until the Mariners first spring training game down in Arizona.

It’s college basketball and hockey season.

Can the Zags get their act together, learn how to guard somebody and make a little noise in the NCAA tournament?

Wazzu looks slick under David Riley, and you wonder — over and over — how good would this team be if leading scorer Cedric Coward weren’t injured and out for the season?

Hockey junkies are excited that the Kraken have won three out of four and look way, way better.

Could they make a run at the playoffs?

Meanwhile.

Readers bury me with emails about the NFL, non-stop.

Mostly, these are Seahawks fans, but not all of them. We have diehard 49er lifers and even Packer cheeseheads running around North Idaho.

And of course, we have Raider folk who don’t care what city the Silver and Black call home these days.

It’s crazy.

I mean, three more games and the pro football season will be over — and yet, so many of you still want to talk about it.

Passionately.

HEY, IF the Seahawks have hit their wall at the very edge of making the playoffs, and that’s it, then I’m all in with the Chiefs.

My stepson loves that team.

Me, I find Patrick Mahomes obscenely good — and it’s fun following the Travis Kelce-Taylor Swift romance.

Did you know that hoop queen Caitlin Clark sat with Taylor at last week’s playoff game?

Silly question.

Of course you know.

Look, I hope the Chiefs get their historic three-peat at the Super Bowl — although the Bills and Josh Allen may have something to say about it this weekend.

OK, back to the Seahawks and all you suffering fans.

Predictably, more than half of the messages I get are about Geno Smith.

Or, more accurately, about whether the Hawks need a new quarterback to win anything.

The frustration is understandable.

Geno is 34, his contract situation is a nightmare, and he seems to be regressing since becoming QB1 in Seattle.

He threw 15 interceptions this season, trailing only the 16 unleashed by Kirk Cousins (who lost his job in Atlanta) and Baker Mayfield (who racked up almost double the passing yardage as Geno).

The Seahawks’ brain trust, principally GM John Schneider and coach Mike Macdonald, must untangle the ball of yarn involving Geno’s skills, his age, and the frightening issue of money.

Here’s an except from Seattle Sports, which makes the situation a little clearer.

“Smith is signed with Seattle through 2025, having inked a three-year, $75 million contract extension in March 2023. 

“But given the veteran quarterback’s rising salary cap hit and his reported desire for a new deal, it’s unlikely either side would want Smith to play out the 2025 season on his current contract.

“According to Over The Cap, Smith’s salary cap hit jumps from $26.4 million in 2024 to $44.5 million in 2025. 

“As it currently stands, that would put the Seahawks a projected $27.4 million over the cap in 2025 — more than just two others teams.

“From Smith’s perspective, he would appear to be eyeing an extension that places him more in line with the skyrocketing quarterback market, as his current $25 million average ranks just 19th among QBs. 

“That essentially leaves the Seahawks with two realistic options. They could sign Smith to an extension on a restructured deal that reduces his 2025 cap hit. 

“Or, they could either trade or release Smith, which would clear $31 million in cap space.”

THE WAY it generally works around the league, teams who have quarterbacks on rookie contracts (which run to four or five years) can spend and spend on skilled players to surround their QB.

The veteran quarterbacks who are flat-out superstars get a bundle of money in later seasons, but they normally work out deals to stretch the payments over several years.

They want to help the franchise find talent.

And win.

The problem in Seattle is that Smith now commands the salary of a star, but he’s actually a mid-tier QB who doesn’t offer a running threat – and whose next contract will start at age 34.

That worked like a charm for Tom Brady.

It’s working now for the younger Mahomes.

But, hell, you can’t break the bank for Geno.

Can you?

The puzzle: Where do you find a successor?

Schnieder has the reputation of a keen QB scout, a guy who can uncover his next star almost anyplace.

Well, John will have to be magic to pull this off.

The Seahawks draft 18th this year, and it looks to us amateurs that no one in a thin quarterback class will be available at that spot.

Schneider might have to find someone in free agency, or pluck his next QB out of the clouds.

So.

Yeah, the Hawks face a problem.

It’s pro football’s version of a Rubik’s cube.

I don’t have an answer, either.

Email: scameron@cdapress.com

Steve Cameron’s “Cheap Seats” columns appear in The Press three times each week, normally Tuesday, Wednesday and Friday unless, you know, stuff happens (like this week, for instance).

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