Seattle Seahawks: Why the 'Hawks Need to Get Rid of Tarvaris Jackson

In Week 16 of the NFL, the Seattle Seahawks took on the San Francisco 49ers. Much was at stake. If the Seahawks won, and the Chargers beat the Lions, the Seahawks would still be in the hunt for the final NFC playoff spot. The Seahawks, however, did not beat the 49ers. And after the game, one thought crept into my head: “Tarvaris Jackson needs to go.”

His line for the day was 15 completions on 28 attempt—just a tad over 50 percent. Jackson threw for 163 yards, with one touchdown and no interceptions. However, it’s one stat that really made the difference both in the game, and my belief that he needs to go.

Late in the fourth quarter, with the Seahawks down by two points, they were driving. On 3rd-and-3 from the 49ers 48-yard line, Jackson was flushed from the pocket. Finding no open receivers, he ran for the first down, but was stopped and tackled, and in the process, lost the football. The 49ers recovered, and eventually went on to win the game.

Tarvaris Jackson has no special ability. He has bad accuracy, doesn’t have a rocket for an arm, no awareness of the collapsing pocket, holds onto the ball way too long, and doesn’t have much speed. He has no defining characteristics. Opposing teams are not afraid of his speed, nor his arm.

Think of quarterbacks such as Aaron Rodgers, Drew Brees and Tom Brady. We know exactly what they are capable of. They all have rocket arms, and Rodgers also has the same mobility of quarterbacks such as Elway and Young. Even consider the Redskins' Rex Grossman. At times, he makes very questionable decisions with the football, but no one is going to say he doesn’t have a rocket for an arm. Not only does Tarvais Jackson not have a powerful arm, he constantly struggles with accuracy. That is not a successful combo.

I’m not saying the Seahawks need to mortgage their entire draft to move up and select Andrew Luck. For the most part, they have a good defense. They also have good receivers in place, and a beast in Marshawn Lynch.

I’m also not saying if the Seahawks get a good quarterback for 2012-2013 they’ll be able to compete for the Super Bowl, but they’ll certainly be able to compete for the NFC West. It seems extremely unlikely that the Saints would lose Drew Brees, and that Drew Brees would want to leave the Saints, but he is a free agent at the end of the year. The Seahawks, however, need another quarterback in place for the 2012 season. It’s the only way they’ll be competitive.