Raiders Get Concerning Leak About Geno Smith’s Contract Situation

Geno Smith is a Las Vegas Raider but it’s still unclear how long that will last. When the team traded for the quarterback from the Seattle Seahawks, there was no agreement on a new contract in place.

He’s not been a Raider for nearly a month and still hasn’t even had an introductory press conference. Smith has just one year remaining on his contract and doesn’t seem eager to play on an expiring deal.

While it still seems likely that the quarterback will get a contract extension, he may be willing to hold out and refuse to play for the Raiders until that happens, according to The Athletic’s Tashan Reed.

“Smith is in the final year of a three-year contract he signed with the Seattle Seahawks in 2023,” Reed wrote in a March 31 column. “Although he was paid a $16 million roster bonus on March 16, none of his $14.8 million salary for 2025 is guaranteed. It’s unlikely that Smith would play without a new deal, according to league sources.”

A new quarterback holding out before ever playing a snap for the team could be a big problem for the Raiders. That wouldn’t be setting them up for success heading into the 2025 season. It’s hard to see a scenario where it actually comes to that.

Pete Carroll & John Spytek Talk Smith

What will help Smith is that head coach Pete Carroll worked with him for years in Seattle and is a big supporter of the quarterback. He said that the two sides are still working on getting a deal done.

“We’re working on it,” Carroll told reporters Monday of Smith’s contract at the annual league meeting. “G’s excited to get going and get started. He’ll be here when we get rolling, but we are working on it.”

Carroll was also speaking like Smith will be the quarterback for years to come.

“Geno is an immediate fix for us, and it’s going to last us,” Carroll said. “We’re going to get a number of years from Geno at his very best. He’s healthy and ready to go. He’s as tuned in as he’s ever been, but that doesn’t mean that we don’t see some guys coming out with tremendous potential. We’re not excluding taking anybody.”

General manager John Spytek had similar comments about the contract situation.

“We’re looking forward to having him and having him for not just this year, but for the years to come,” Spytek said Monday. “When we get everything where it needs to be, he’ll be around. I’m confident that’ll happen fairly soon.”

Smith may not be the quarterback for the next decade but it stands to reason that the Raiders would want him to be the starter for at least the next two to three years.

Raiders Could Still Draft a QB

While Smith is almost certainly going to be the starter for the Raiders in 2025, they haven’t ruled out drafting a quarterback early, per Reed.

“Despite trading for Smith, the Raiders remain open to drafting a quarterback as early as the first round of the 2025 draft, according to league sources,” Reed wrote.

If Smith gets a new contract before the draft, it’s highly unlikely they’d use their first-round pick on a quarterback but things could get interesting if the two sides haven’t come to an agreement come draft time.