Report: Seahawks want Geno Smith extension, will start contract talks after season

Words can barely describe the season that Geno Smith is having. Following a summer where he held off Drew Lock in a quarterback competition and dealt with speculation that the team would add a veteran passer like Baker Mayfield (or Jimmy G....), Smith is playing like one of the best passers in the NFL. Apparently, the Seattle Seahawks are taking note; the team is already starting to look towards 2023, and they want to keep Geno around. According to Ian Rapoport, the organization wants to extend Geno Smith, with contract talks likely to start following the season.

Rapoport goes on to say the following in the article:

“In fact, the Seahawks want both QBs back — Smith and backup Drew Lock. They have yet to make an offer to Smith, who’s set to be a free agent in 2023, to extend his contract, and those talks will happen after the season.

But it appears Smith has done enough to convince the team that his star turn is real and spectacular. Unbelievably, Smith is third in the NFL with a 107.2 passer rating, just ahead of ... Patrick Mahomes and Joe Burrow. For a player who hadn’t started more than three games since 2014, it’s remarkable. Considered a career backup until he beat out Lock in training camp ahead of this season, Smith is completing 73.1% of his passes and has already thrown for 2,199 yards.”

I’m honestly more surprised about the statement regarding Drew Lock, as it is no great shock that the team is showing little hesitation in wanting to keep Geno around; he has consistently been playing like a Top-5 QB in 2022; he is Pro Football Focus’s 4th highest graded QB — following Tua Tagovailoa, Jalen Hurts, and Patrick Mahomes — and ranks 5th in Defense-adjusted Yards Above Replacement (DYAR) according to Football Outsiders. Similarly, he sits at 4th in ESPN’s QBR.

For his accolades, he was named the NFC Offensive Player of the Month following an October that saw Geno lead the team to a 4-1 record while throwing 9 touchdowns to only 1 interception, leading to a 111.7 passer rating. All things considered, this has been a wild and largely unexpected ride for a team and player that many wrote off during the offseason. Smith will look to keep this hot streak going as the team sets up to take on the Tampa Bay Buccaneers in Germany.

And for those who want to see what Rapoport had to say on the matter on the NFL Network, here is the video.