Jalen Milroe was supposed to close the gap on Drew Lock for the Seahawks’ QB2 job, but through two preseason games, that just hasn’t happened. The reports coming out of training camp were encouraging because Seattle believes in Milroe and remains invested in his development. However, head coach Mike Macdonald and Brian Fleury have made it super clear: Milroe needs to show more if he wants to earn opportunities in more situations. And honestly, it hasn’t changed a bit.
Preseason Woes Are Piling Up
Against the Dallas Cowboys, our offense struggled, sure, but Lock still looked way more comfortable than Milroe. Then came the Tennessee Titans game, and the gap between them just blew wide open. Milroe had a terrible game, finishing with two interceptions and taking another sack on fourth down. Outside of a few runs, he produced next to nothing offensively. Now, don’t get it twisted: two preseason games aren’t enough for the 12s to give up on the project, especially with a young QB like Milroe. When the Emerald City drafted him, we all knew he’d need time to refine his game. A couple of bad preseason outings don’t suddenly change that expectation.
The Big Issue: Pulling The Trigger
But here’s the kicker: there’s a difference between understanding a young quarterback needs development and actually seeing that development happen. So far, even compared to pretty conservative expectations for where Milroe should be, he seems behind. The biggest issue isn’t really his arm strength. It’s his willingness to actually *use* it. The Seahawks have even put Milroe in situations that should highlight his strengths, like rollouts, play-action concepts, and plays that reduce the number of reads he has to make while still keeping his ability to run in the mix. But Milroe just hasn’t consistently pulled the trigger. Is it a lack of confidence? Is he trying to play too conservatively and avoid turnovers? Whatever it is, the result is the same: he’s passing up chances to make plays, both as a passer and as a runner.
That was super obvious against the Titans. On his first interception, Milroe just took too long to deliver the ball, giving the linebacker all the time in the world to read his eyes and jump into the passing lane. Yeah, young QBs make those mistakes, but it’s exactly the kind of processing issue he absolutely needs to fix. On the second interception, Milroe escaped the initial pressure from Beau Stephens, kept moving, found some space, and then once again… *another* pick to kill the drive. It’s brutal.
What happens next for Milroe with the regular season looming? He’s got to show us something more, and fast.
This article was created with AI assistance and published under Seattle On Tap’s editorial standards. See our Editorial Policy.
Originally reported by Field Gulls.
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