The Seahawks have some tough calls to make this offseason. At the top of the list is deciding how much retaining Geno Smith is worth.
For his part, former Seattle cornerback Richard Sherman thinks Smith getting anything less than $30 million a year would be a travesty, especially after a Pro Bowl year.
TOP QB money will soon be 55m. @GenoSmith3 getting less that 30m after a probowl year would be a travesty. I see alot about “team friendly” deals and that would make sense if he wasnt a FA. Has to work for both sides and hopefully both are reasonable.
— Richard Sherman (@RSherman_25) January 20, 2023
At the moment the highest-paid QB in the league per season is Aaron Rodgers, who’s making just over $50 million annually. Russell Wilson is next at $49 million, followed by several other A-listers. There’s a significant drop between Matt Stafford/Dak Prescott (tied for No. 8/9 at $40 million per year) and Kirk Cousins, who ranks 10th at $35 million a season. Our best guess is that Smith’s representatives will try to sell him as a top-10 talent and deserving $40 million per year.
However, he has several disadvantages. For one thing, Smith is 32 years old and even if he picks up where he left off he likely only has a few good seasons left in him. His turnover issues in the second half of the 2022 campaign are also a serious concern.
Most of all, Seattle has a lot of leverage by holding two of the top 20 picks in the 2023 NFL draft, which puts them in range to land a much younger QB prospect that would be playing on a rookie contract for the next four to five years. They also have a history of low-balling their best players in these major negotiations.
All together, we expect the Seahawks to try drawing the line somewhere around $30 million per year to $32.445 million, which is the projected number for the franchise tag this year. A couple weeks ago, NFL Network reported that Geno Smith is returning to Seattle in 2023 one way or another – indicating the front office is willing to use the tag if they have to.
