Geno Smith’s comeback story will continue with the Seahawks for at least another three seasons with the team announcing Monday night they have agreed to terms with the 10-year veteran quarterback on a new contract.
Earlier in the day, multiple outlets reported that the Seahawks and Smith had agreed on a new three-year deal that could be worth up to $105 million and includes $52 million in the first calendar year. The Seahawks’ announcement did not include contract terms, and more specific details had yet to be revealed, including what the specific salary-cap hits will be for any of the three seasons of the deal.
A league source confirmed to The Seattle Times that talks between the two sides had intensified in recent days, with each side hoping to get something done before Tuesday’s deadline for the Seahawks to use a franchise tag on Smith.
At an average of $35 million, Smith would tie Minnesota’s Kirk Cousins for the 10th-highest salary per year among NFL quarterbacks and match the annual average of the last contract Russell Wilson signed with Seattle in 2019 (four years, $140 million).
The $35 million average also tops what Smith would have gotten on the franchise tag for 2023 of $32.4 million, though the expectation is the Year 1 cap hit will be far below that number — one reason to get the deal done now and avoid having to use the tag (all of which would go on the cap) while also assuring Smith of longer-term stability.
And the $52 million Smith will get in the first calendar year (a combination of signing bonus and salary, though a specific breakdown was not immediately available) is almost triple the $17.5 million Smith made in the first 10 years of his career. It’s a massive raise from the $3.5 million deal he signed with Seattle last April (Smith ended up earning $7 million after hitting all of his incentives).
And thus answers the biggest question the Seahawks had heading into the offseason, with Seattle now able to turn its attention to other matters.
Smith was set to be an unrestricted free agent on March 15 and was likely to get some significant interest after a season in which he led the NFL in completion percentage at 69.8% and set a handful of Seahawks franchise records, including passing attempts (572), yards (4,282) and completions (399), and was named as the league’s Comeback Player of the Year.
Most important, he showed he could lead the Seahawks back to the playoffs in his first season taking over for the traded Wilson, who had been the only QB to lead the team to a Super Bowl title.
When he started a wild-card playoff game against the 49ers, he became the fifth quarterback in team history to start a playoff game (Dave Krieg, Jon Kitna, Matt Hasselbeck, Wilson).
When Seattle traded Wilson to Denver on March 8, 2022, Smith wasn’t even officially a Seahawk, not re-signing until mid-April. Smith’s signing came three months after Smith was arrested in January 2022 on suspicion of driving under the influence (Smith has not been charged as prosecutors wait for results of blood tests).
Smith then had to weather a training camp competition with Drew Lock — acquired in the Wilson trade — to become a starting quarterback for the first time since the 2014 season with the New York Jets.
In his first start with the Seahawks in 2022, Smith threw for two touchdown passes in the first half to lead the Seahawks to a 17-16 win over Wilson and the Broncos. Afterward, Smith coined a phrase during an on-field interview that came to define his season, saying, “They wrote me off. I ain’t write back, though.”
And with that, he was off and running (or should we say passing?), leading the Seahawks to wins in six of their first nine games to rank as one of the surprise teams in the NFL.
A stretch of five losses in six games followed, putting a playoff bid at risk. But Smith responded to that challenge by leading the Seahawks to wins in their last two games to get into the playoffs, when the season ended with a 41-23 loss to the 49ers.
Smith said after that game he hoped to finish his career with the Seahawks and repay the franchise for giving him a chance to resurrect his career.
“I want to finish my career in Seattle,” he said. “I want to be here. The town, the city, the team, Coach (Pete) Carroll, the organization — they all embraced me. You know, I was a guy who probably could have been out of the league. They embraced me … at a time when not many people were, and that means a lot to me.
“I got a lot of loyalty in me. And I want to repay those guys for doing that.”
Some wondered how the late-season stumble might impact Smith’s value, and the Seahawks’ interest in keeping him, especially when factoring in that Seattle had to try to assess if Smith’s 2022 season was a flash in the pan or something he can sustain and that he will be 33 in October.
But Monday’s news makes clear the Seahawks have decided to ride with Smith, who becomes the fourth pending free agent to agree to a deal with the team this offseason, joining kicker Jason Myers, fullback Nick Bellore and guard Phil Haynes. All could have become unrestricted free agents on March 15.
Smith becomes the only quarterback currently on the Seahawks roster. Lock and Sean Mannion, who was the practice squad QB last year, are both free agents.
The Seahawks have said they hope to retain Lock. But Lock, who is 26, may prefer to find a team with whom he might have a better chance to play.
Seattle could also supplement the quarterback position in the draft, set for April 27-29, with both Carroll and general manager John Schneider saying the team could still look draft a quarterback even if Smith is re-signed.
“In the position we’re in, we are totally connected to the quarterbacks that are coming out. This is a really huge opportunity for us,” Carroll said. “It’s a rare opportunity. We’ve been drafting in the low 20s for such a long time, just don’t get the chance with these guys. So we’re deeply involved with it.”
The Seahawks have picks No. 5 and 20 in the first round — the fifth coming from Denver via the Wilson deal — and could well decide to take a quarterback.
But, for now, the Seahawks have their QB1 for 2023 and beyond.
