The Seattle Seahawks quarterback competition has taken another left turn.
Drew Lock tested positive for COVID-19 on Tuesday, ruling him out for Thursday’s preseason tussle with the Chicago Bears.
Lock, who was named the starter for that game early Tuesday, was seeing more reps with the first-team units. His absence will give Geno Smith a chance to separate himself and grow comfortable with the starters. His performance on Thursday could go a long way in deciding the quarterback competition.
With that said, neither quarterback gives them a phenomenal chance at winning a lot of games. FanDuel has Seattle at 5.5 wins, with -135 odds on the over and +115 on the under. Smith gives the Seahawks more consistency under center, but makes that 5.5 line really fair. On the other hand, Lock objectively has more variance to his game, giving them a better chance at both bottoming out and exceeding expectations. For now, it may be best to carefully watch the under and make your decision based on your feelings of Lock, assuming he’s able to rebound in this competition.