Geno Smith was wholesome sufficient to gown for Seattle’s win this previous Monday, however he didn’t get the beginning. After consecutive video games with Drew Lock beneath heart, Smith is on monitor to return to the sphere.
Head coach Pete Carroll indicated after the Seahawks’ win against the Eagles that Smith was expected to get the start in Week 16 (h/t Michael-Shawn Dugar of The Athletic). To little shock, the veteran is now off Seattle’s harm report altogether, placing him on monitor to re-take the highest spot on the QB depth chart to shut out the season whereas the group pushes for a wild-card spot.
The Seahawks’ possibilities in that regard have been helped by the last-minute comeback Lock orchestrated, however Smith’s return will give Seattle’s offense a lift. Last season’s Comeback Player of the Year has not had the identical success he loved in 2022, however he profiles as having a better ceiling than Lock. Smith’s performances dipped throughout Seattle’s latest dropping streak, so will probably be fascinating to see if he can rebound when again on the sphere.
Smith’s 2022 Pro Bowl marketing campaign earned him a big increase on a brand new Seahawks deal. That three-year, $75M pact consists of efficiency escalators and scheduled bonus payouts each earlier than and after the start of the 2024 league 12 months. As a consequence, a brief window will exist following the present season in which the group may transfer on with a restricted cap penalty in search of a youthful choice beneath heart.
Smith’s statistics have fallen nearer to his profession averages in 2023 after he put up private bests throughout the board final 12 months. Many members of the group’s offense from the 2022 marketing campaign are nonetheless in place, and the addition of first-round wideout Jaxon Smith-Njigba has created an alternative choice in the passing recreation. It would come as little shock if Seattle have been to eye a transfer to a brand new signal-caller in place of Smith, nevertheless, particularly if his late-season efficiency matches his different 2023 showings.
Sitting at 7-7, the Seahawks are in the combo for an NFC wild-card berth, one thing which might duplicate the group’s achievement from final 12 months. Smith will earn added reward if he can information Seattle again to the postseason, although he may very well be taking part in for his long-term future in the Emerald City over the following few weeks.
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