Fan bases always have strong feelings about their favorite team’s starting quarterback. In the Pacific Northwest, the opinions are all over the place when it comes to Seattle Seahawks quarterback Geno Smith.
Smith’s career arc has been fascinating. As the Seahawks head east to face the New York Jets on Sunday (10 a.m., FOX TV, KIRO Radio), they’ll start Smith, who is on a list of New York Jets quarterback draft picks who are considered busts by fans, along with Sam Darnold and Zach Wilson. The Jets quarterback position over the past 10 years looks a lot like the Seahawks starters during the 1990s — a lot of names and virtually no success. Thirteen quarterbacks have started at least a game for the Jets since Smith played 16 games for New York in 2013.
Smith went from Jets starter to having his jaw broken by teammate IK Enemkpali to bouncing around the league to unquestioned starter in Seattle. Of $67 million earned during his 12-year career, all but $10 million has come in the past three seasons.
How good is he?
I reached out to some fans through a few Facebook forums to gather some thoughts from some of the Seahawks’ most ardent fans. If you scroll through these pages during a game when emotions are at their highest, folks have a lot to say about Smith. When he leads the team to a game-winning drive — which he has done more than any quarterback in the league the past two seasons — Smith fans show their love. If he throws an interception — he leads the NFL with 12 this season — there are many posts about needing a new quarterback and pleading with the Seahawks to insert backup Sam Howell.
Fans were more measured when they replied to my questions.
“If Geno had a more serviceable offensive line, he could do four things: 1. Not be sacked as much. 2. Have a running game. 3. Because of the running game, not have to throw as much. 4. Not have as many interceptions. Honestly, it’s a miracle that he does what he does with what he has! — Terry Garrido, Seahawks Nation Facebook group administrator.
“Geno is a real gamer!” — Chris Warner, Seattle Seahawks Fans Only Facebook group
“Let him be, haters. It’s a team game. It can’t always be his fault.” — Mike Powers, Seattle Seahawks Fans Only Facebook group.
“Geno is a good QB, but doesn’t have very good pocket presence. If he did his sacks would be lower and he would be more effective.” James Trimble, Seattle Seahawks Facebook group.
Joel Fantanos, replied to Trimble: “Wrong! He doesn’t cause many self-inflicted pressures that lead to sacks. 96% of it is on the offensive line.”
Trimble and Fantanos continued back and forth with some respectable debate, offering some statistics and seemingly agreeing to disagree.
Fans are not the only ones weighing Smith’s strengths and weaknesses. Seahawks coach Mike Macdonald and general manager John Schneider will have a decision to make after the season. Extend Smith, or release him? Smith does have a year remaining on his 3-year, $75-million contract, but it’s unlikely the team would head into next season with Smith’s current $38.5 million cap hit for 2025.
“Look, he knows how important ball dominance is to us and to not turn the ball over,” Macdonald said after a 16-6 win over the Arizona Cardinals on Nov. 24 when asked about a red-zone interception thrown by his quarterback. He knows that we can’t do that in those situations and we know he can’t. It’s not like we’re losing trust in him or anything.
“We got his back and a lot of the things that make Geno a great player is his playmaking ability. So there is a fine line of, (he) arguably won us the game with zero-checks and extending plays and commanding the line and giving him autonomy to do what he feels he needs to do in that moment. So there’s a balance there. You never want to take the playmaker out of the player. So making some decisions to protect the ball in those moments, yeah, he could probably be a little more careful in those situations, but there’s a fine line there.”
It’s hard to say what the market will be for Smith, but it is expected to be well above his current average salary of $25 million per season. It would not be a shock to see that number double, at least on a short-term basis. There are currently nine quarterbacks bringing in an average salary of over $50 million per year. Smith’s average of $25 million ranks 19th among signal callers.
So, how good is Smith?
It seems not too many folks question Smith’s effort or his desire to win games. It’s pretty clear he’s worked hard to be the best he can at the position.
He was good enough to be out Drew Lock after Russell Wilson was traded. The Seahawks traded for Washington Commanders quarterback Sam Howell during the offseason, but it seems Howell is not close to pushing Smith this season.
Mike Florio of Pro Football Talk referred to Smith as a “bottom-third” quarterback compared to other NFL starters. Pro Football Focus rates Smith 11th this season among quarterbacks who have started the majority of the season. He’s below Sam Darnold, Brock Purdy and Baker Mayfield, and above Kyler Murray, Trevor Lawrance and Kirk Cousins in those rankings. Russell Wilson, who took over the starting spot in Pittsburgh, is ranked 18th.
Though PFF grades can seem questionable at times, No. 11 seems about right. Smith is often fantastic in the clutch. His teammates appear to respect him, and there are likely not many who want to win more than Smith. That passion, though, sometimes leads to major mistakes, like the pick-6 in a loss to the Rams and two other red zone interceptions this season that kept points that seemed imminent off the scoreboard. At age 34, those occasional head-scratchers seem unlikely to disappear.
We’ll find out this offseason exactly how Schneider and Macdonald feel.
The pick: The Jets have enough talent to win the game, and an East Cost trip against a team coming off of a bye is a concern. The Jets, however, are a mess. Seahawks 24, Jets 16
Categorized:Seahawks
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