RENTON — Yes, Geno Smith would like a new contract from the Seattle Seahawks.
“Yeah, I mean, that’s true,’’ Smith said during his weekly media availability Thursday when asked about a report last month that his representatives had approached the Seahawks about redoing his current deal.
Smith, though, indicated it was not done out of any unhappiness, just the way things work in the NFL.
“That’s just normal business,’’ he said. “Nothing wrong with that.’’
Seahawks GM John Schneider said last week he would not specifically confirm Smith’s side had approached the team but added “there’s a lot of people that want contract extensions. … that’s part of the job. It happens every year, all the time.’’
Schneider said there had been no negotiations between the two sides, stating a simple “no’’ when asked if the team and Smith’s representatives had discussed a new contract.
Smith is entering the second season of a three-year deal he signed in March 2023 that has a base average of $75 million, or $25 million per season.
Salary escalators could have taken it as high as $105 million overall.
Those escalators are based off Smith exceeding his 2022 stats in five different categories (such as TDs and completion percentage), each triggering a $2 million salary jump for the following season, as well as an additional $5 million for hitting all five escalators and another $5 million for reaching the Super Bowl.
Smith did not meet those numbers last season, so for now the contract remains at its base value for the 2024 season. But he could reach any or all of those numbers this year to boost the value for the 2025 season by $15 million.
While Schneider didn’t say it, one reason Seattle would decline to talk to Smith about a new deal now is to keep with the team’s long-held precedent of not redoing contracts that have more than one year remaining.
But Smith’s acknowledgment of the report from Mike Garafolo of the NFL Network on Jason Puckett’s Pucksports podcast in mid-August, and Schneider stating there have been no talks, makes the stakes of this season for the Seahawks quarterback pretty clear.
Another big year — similar or better than the one he had in 2022 when he led the NFL in completion percentage (69.2%) and joined Russell Wilson and Dave Krieg as the only QBs in franchise history to throw for at least 30 TDs in one season — and the Seahawks will undoubtedly begin working with Smith on a new contract.
Smith will undoubtedly want a contract that will get him a lot closer in salary to the QBs at the top of the pay scale.
Smith’s $25 million per year is 20th in the NFL this year and far off the QB next on the list, Baker Mayfield of Tampa Bay, who is 19th at $33.3. Leading the list are Cincinnati’s Joe Burrow, Green Bay’s Jordan Love and Jacksonville’s Trevor Lawrence, all at $55 million per season.
But if the marriage of Smith and new offensive coordinator Ryan Grubb doesn’t take and the offense slogs through the season, then the Seahawks could decide to go a different direction at QB in 2025.
That Smith turns 34 in October will unquestionably factor in. That Seattle also has no clear options aside from Smith on the roster other than Sam Howell — whose preseason play didn’t indicate he’s anywhere near the level of Smith just yet — will also factor in.
Smith has no guaranteed money remaining on his deal and the Seahawks could cut him after the season and take a $13.5 million dead cap hit, a number that wouldn’t dissuade the team from moving on.
That might seem to put some additional pressure on Smith to prove his worth.
Smith, though, has said often he feels he’s always in a prove-it situation.
“It’s still year-by-year,” he said in 2023 shortly after signing his current deal. “I’ve got to look at it like that. It’s one year at a time for me.’’
Thursday, he said he feels more comfortable than ever as a new season approaches, his third as the team’s starter following the trade of Wilson to Denver in March 2022.
“Third year now, being able to go into the offseason and work on some things that I needed to get better at from last season,’’ Smith said. “Kind of knowing that you’re going to go in and be the starter allows you to be a little bit more comfortable. I think I’ve settled down a little bit, I think I was maybe a little excited especially that first year (as a starter) and then last year. I just feel like I overall settled down and I think it’s just helping me be more calm when I’m out there.”
Smith said that while his 2023 raw numbers weren’t as gaudy as 2022 — TDs down to 20 and completion percentage to 64.7%, to name two — he felt the season validated what he’d done the year before.
“I think that first year I can just remember being so excited, I hadn’t played,’’ he said. “Being so excited to just go out there and play. Then the second year you kind of have those thoughts, ‘Can I do it again? Can I come out here and do it again?’ Now, I’m kind of at that point where it’s on tape. I’ve just got to go out there and be me and that’s really kind of how I feel about it.”
Teammates have also mentioned how Smith also seems more comfortable as a leader.
“Just speaking life into his teammates,’’ receiver DK Metcalf said this week. “I think that’s one thing that he’s done an incredible job at this offseason. He’s motivating us every play. Anytime we’re in the huddle, he’s always trying to motivate us that this is one play at a time, one drive at a time, and we’re going to score. He tries to get the best out of everybody in the huddle at the time. I think that’s one thing that he’s done exceptionally well this offseason.”
If the talk turns to action and Smith makes his third straight Pro Bowl and Seattle the playoffs, then the payoff down the road could be big.
Smith on Thursday indicated that for now, he isn’t looking past Sunday’s regular season opener against Denver and seeing how the new-look, Grubb-led offense performs.
“I think just mainly, how can we do? How good can we be?’’ Smith said of what he’s most eager to see Sunday. “I think I’ve got a pretty good idea of where we’re at. I feel really great about it. But obviously you’ve got to go out and execute, you’ve got to prove it. I think that we’re well on our way to doing something special here. I think we have the right guys in place, I think we have a great system in place and the right coaches. I look forward to this season, but mainly game one and just getting out there in front of the fans and showing what we can do.”
