INDIANAPOLIS, Ind. - Playing a short drive away from the Virginia Mason Athletic Complex with the Washington Huskies, Michael Penix starred orchestrating Ryan Grubb's offense in the Seattle Seahawks' backyard, making it easy for general manager John Schneider and the scouting department to keep tabs on him.
Given his proximity to the facility and Grubb's arrival as the new offensive coordinator on coach Mike Macdonald's staff, the team didn't need to visit with the gunslinging Heisman finalist at the 2024 NFL combine. Still, when asked for his thoughts on his former play caller recently being hired by the Seahawks, he said he was a bit surprised Schneider and company hadn't hit him up for at least an informal interview this week.
"I actually didn't talk to the Seahawks. I don't know why that is. Maybe they know me, hope so," Penix smiled. "But I'm super excited for him [Grubb]. He and Coach [Scott] Huff, the things they were able to do at the University of Washington, it was special. To see them get success at the next level, I'm super excited to see it."
The most prolific passer to ever don a Huskies uniform, Penix enjoyed a record-breaking two seasons while steering the program back to the ranks of college football's elite. Thriving in Grubb's scheme with a trio of future NFL receivers at his disposal and one of the nation's best offensive lines, he became the first quarterback in school history with back-to-back 4,000 yard passing seasons and his 36 passing touchdowns in 2023 rank second behind only Jake Browning.
While Penix fired the ball all over the yard in Montlake with his powerful left-handed cannon, the Seahawks received quality quarterback play of their own from a resurgent Geno Smith. Previously a backup for long-time starter Russell Wilson, he finished in the top five in touchdown passes and completion rate while winning Comeback Player of the Year honors in 2022, earning a new multi-year contract in the process.
Even after his numbers regressed a bit last season while missing two games with a groin injury, Seattle recently restructured Smith's contract, turning his upcoming roster bonus into a signing bonus to create $4 million in salary cap relief. Pouring water on the proverbial speculation flame in regard to his future, Schneider indicated the veteran quarterback has been in the team's plans for 2024 all along and the timing of the restructure wasn't a big deal.
With Penix now entering the NFL and Grubb taking his play calling talents to the league, however, the Seahawks understandably have been linked to the prolific passer as a potential landing spot for him to be Smith's heir apparent. Considering his immense success in Grubb's offense, such an arrangement obviously would make great sense from a schematic standpoint, as he would be able to hit the ground running with plenty of crossover from what he did in college.
But away from the obvious connection with Grubb, Penix also has developed a relationship with Smith over the past couple of years as they starred under center for their respective teams in the Pacific Northwest.
After beating Wilson's Broncos on Monday Night Football to open the 2022 season, Smith famously said “They wrote me off, I ain’t write back though,” in his post-game interview. More than a year later, Penix decided to use the line himself after Washington beat Oregon in the Pac-12 Championship Game in November, drawing praise from the veteran quarterback a few days later.
“That was awesome,” Smith told reporters at the VMAC. “I got a chance to throw with Mike in the offseason and had a chance to talk to him, he’s a really special player and a special guy. To be able to kind of share Seattle with him is awesome. I love what they’re doing at U-Dub.”
During his media availability on Friday in Indianapolis, Penix mentioned that prior workout with Smith when asked about the possibility of becoming teammates in Seattle, as the two trained together in the spring before the 2023 season began.
Providing an opportunity for the aspiring NFL quarterback to work with an established starter who overcame significant adversity earlier in his career, Smith left a positive impression on Penix with his work ethic and attention to detail. Watching the Seahawks closely during his time with the Huskies, he admires the veteran for his leadership and how teammates rally around him, making him an ideal veteran to learn from as he jumps to the league.
"He's a great guy that works extremely hard," Penix said of being an understudy to Smith. "I could tell that everybody on that team gravitates around him and trusts him as their leader, so that'd be cool."
Beyond their established relationship off the field, Smith and Penix share many similarities skill-set wise. Both quarterbacks ranked among the best in their respective levels in completion percentage and touchdown passes of 20-plus yards, displaying elite arm strength both from the pocket and off platform and the ability to stretch the field vertically as passers. Each excelled on play action as well, completing north of 70 percent of their passes off play fakes in 2023.
While neither will be mistaken as Lamar Jackson, Smith and Penix also have enough mobility and athleticism to extend plays with their legs and occasionally tuck and run when they need to.
Keeping those similarities in account, the Seahawks would be a great destination for Penix to learn from another quarterback who has many of the same traits before eventually taking the reins as the new starter. Of course, Smith may have a thing or two to say about that, as he won't be giving up his job without a fight regardless of who enters the mix to compete with him.
Still, even after beating Drew Lock out for the starting job two years ago, Smith has maintained a close connection with his peer in the quarterback room and did everything he could to help prepare his backup when he replaced him for a pair of starts late last season. Already having a strong relationship with Penix, he would offer assistance for the rookie as he adjusts to the pros while remaining focused on keeping his gig as the team's starter for 2024 and beyond.
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