Quarterback Geno Smith hasn’t even played a game for the Las Vegas Raiders since coming over from the Seattle Seahawks this offseason, and he is already feeling the heat of scrutiny. In a video that was originally released from the Overtime TikTok account, he was caught jawing a little during a youth 7-on-7 football game.
Smith is spending some time coaching the South Florida Express, a national-championship 7-on-7 football team this offseason. Things got heated at one point, and unfortunately the infamous MLFootball X account got ahold of the clip, highlighting a back and forth where Smith repeatedly made everyone aware “that’s why I get paid the big bucks.”
After the video got picked up by good ole’ social media, Smith took to X himself and had choice words for those who had something negative to say.
In the world of competitive sports, a healthy amount of trash talk only makes the game better, if done right. Smith was highlighted participating harmlessly in the back and forth. There was no disrespect, no name calling, or threats involved. Yet, the negativity followed.
One major positive was that Smith did not have to go through this unnecessary scrutiny alone. Raiders All-Pro defensive end Maxx Crosby, and one of Smith’s new teammates, also had something to say. He made it very clear that he fully has his quarterback’s back.
As Crosby stated that Smith didn’t have anything to tell to anyone, this was some early example of being a good teammate and great leader of the new look Raiders. Crosby even threw in an expletive to let the haters know that Smith is his quarterback. It was refreshing to see such a level of leadership for all Raiders fans out there.
In the end, this is a nonissue. Some attention driven accounts on social media tried to turn this viral moment into a major controversy. Most people, especially those who played competitive sports, didn’t take it as one.
The blessing in disguise was that we did get to see Crosby stick up for his new teammate, a person that he is still just getting to know. The Raiders are in the middle of a cultural shift under new head coach Pete Carroll. It’s nice to know that being a good teammate is high on the pecking order for a player of Crosby’s stature, a role he doesn’t necessarily have to play.
For Smith, there is going to be a lot of pressure on him heading into the 2025 NFL season naturally. He’s getting paid a lot of money to help turn things around in Las Vegas. That’s when the real scrutiny will come, not during a youth 7-on-7 game.
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