INDIANAPOLIS — According to John Schneider, Geno Smith is undoubtedly the Seattle Seahawks’ starting quarterback — for now.
During a news conference at the NFL Scouting Combine on Tuesday afternoon, the Seahawks’ general manager and president of football operations was asked if he considers Smith, whose $12.7 million base salary became fully guaranteed earlier this month, the team’s starting quarterback.
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“Yes,” Schneider said. “(He’s) the starter until he’s not.”
On Thursday, Schneider restructured Smith’s contract — a decision he could make unilaterally because of a clause built into the deal — and pushed half of Smith’s $9.6 million roster bonus into 2025, creating $4.8 million in immediate salary-cap space. Smith’s 2024 cap hit dropped to $26.4 million, which is 10.1 percent of the salary cap, according to Over the Cap.
Schneider classified the contract restructure as a routine cap saving measure and not a move that signals anything about Smith’s future with the franchise.
“Other people made a bigger deal out of that than we did in the building,” Schneider said. “‘Is he gonna be here? Is he not gonna be here?’ He was going to be here. It’s a matter of when are we going to tell him we’re doing this with his roster bonus?”
Schneider’s tepid endorsem*nt of Smith comes on the heels of coach Mike Macdonald’s casting uncertainty about the quarterback’s place in the organization during a television interview with Fox 13 Seattle that aired Sunday (the interview was recorded Thursday before the news of the restructure).
When asked if both Smith and backup quarterback Drew Lock (who is a free agent) are in Seattle’s plans, Macdonald said: “That’s a tough question, and it’s one that I probably can’t answer right now. We’re doing a lot of work on those guys, and I’ve had conversations just to get to know them and understand who they are as people, their background, goals and what their families are like, where they’re from — I didn’t know anything about them coming into this whole thing.”
Mike Macdonald was asked by @AaronLevine_ if both Geno Smith and Drew Lock are involved in the future of the #Seahawks
Mike’s answer, in part: “That’s a tough question, and it’s one that I probably can’t answer right now.” pic.twitter.com/C4hajumUtX
— Dugar, Michael-Shawn (@MikeDugar) February 26, 2024
Schneider’s remarks at the combine and Macdonald’s choice not to answer in the affirmative when speaking about Smith speak to the reality of the team’s quarterback situation: Smith is their guy for the moment, but the Seahawks are leaving the door open and giving themselves the flexibility to make a move, either for an immediate replacement or a long-term successor.
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This is similar to where the Seahawks were this time last season. Schneider and coach Pete Carroll were fans of Smith, who at that time was coming off the best season of his career, but they made it clear that inking Smith to a long-term contract would not prevent them from drafting a quarterback with the fifth pick in the 2023 NFL Draft.
After signing Smith to a three-year deal worth $75 million in base value, Seattle still attended pro days for the top four quarterback prospects in the draft. They made it public that they were leaving the door open.
GO DEEPERSeahawks' interest in top QBs is no smokescreen: 'We're always looking'Seattle also structured Smith’s contract in a way that gave the team flexibility. With the incentives and the deferred base-salary guarantees and roster bonuses, the Seahawks had outs in Smith’s deal, but the contract also had the potential to pay Smith like a borderline top-10 player at his position if he performed at a Pro Bowl-level, as he did in 2022. The contract wasn’t a true all-in investment into Smith, but it would reward him if he continued to play well.
In the context of Seattle’s remarks at the 2023 combine and the structure of Smith’s contract, the tone Schneider and Macdonald have taken when discussing Smith isn’t all that surprising.
🚨🚨 NEW #SeahawksMan2Man podcast 🚨🚨
‘Offseason mailbag: Is Geno the Seahawks’ future?’
• Mike Macdonald’s answer on Geno, Drew
• Draft priorities
• potential cap casualties
• TE situation, trading back, Geno trades, DK trades + more https://t.co/uMvb7m9Z98 pic.twitter.com/zqw4xJaQG8— Dugar, Michael-Shawn (@MikeDugar) February 27, 2024
But it’s still notable that the Seahawks have taken this stance ahead of a draft featuring a half-dozen quarterbacks whom some could consider to be first-round talents. USC’s Caleb Williams (No. 1 on the big board), North Carolina’s Drake Maye (4) and LSU’s Jayden Daniels (8) are ranked highly by The Athletic’s draft expert, Dane Brugler, while Michigan’s J.J. McCarthy (24), Oregon’s Bo Nix (37) and Washington’s Michael Penix Jr. (57) are also in the conversation.
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Seattle’s staff has connections to McCarthy because of Macdonald and special teams coordinator Jay Harbaugh (both coached at Michigan under Jim Harbaugh), and they have ties to Penix through offensive coordinator Ryan Grubb and offensive line coach Scott Huff (both coached at Washington). Thus far, there has been nothing to indicate the Seahawks are leaning toward selecting either of those quarterbacks, but on Tuesday, Schneider once again publicly lamented selecting just two quarterbacks (Russell Wilson in 2012 and Alex McGough in 2018) in his 14 drafts as Seattle’s GM.
“Only drafting two quarterbacks is not something that we’re necessarily proud of,” Schneider said before describing this year’s quarterback class as a “cool” group. Asked if having a new coaching staff creates more urgency to draft a quarterback, he said no, adding that “every year” his goal is to try and acquire a quarterback, whether via free agency or the draft.
Schneider said he’s hopeful the team can retain Lock, and that he plans to meet with the quarterback’s agent this week. The scouting combine is typically where Schneider meets with agents and executives from the other 31 teams to assess free-agent markets, discuss trades and get a feel for what it might cost to retain one of the Seahawks’ own players before he hits the market.
GO DEEPERSeahawks offseason guide: Possible cuts (Jamal Adams, Tyler Lockett?), free agents, more“Then you have to try and prioritize, work with the staff and see if it makes sense with those guys as well,” Schneider said.
It appears Smith will be Seattle’s starting quarterback this season (trading him this offseason would trigger a dead money charge of $27 million while not gaining any cap relief, according to Over the Cap). His numbers in 2023 weren’t as good as they were in 2022, but Smith’s salary and performance are about equal. He ranked 14th in QBR and 16th in expected points added per dropback, according to TruMedia. His cap hit ranks 14th among quarterbacks.
It’s also apparent that Smith’s 2024 season will go a long way toward determining what happens next year. His cap hit rises to $38.5 million in 2025 (14.8 percent of the projected salary cap), and the dead-money charge if releasing him would be $13.5 million. If Smith plays like a franchise quarterback in 2024, his 2025 cap hit will appear feasible; it’s scheduled to rank 11th among quarterbacks, but that will change as players sign new deals. If Smith doesn’t play well, Seattle could move on next offseason while gaining cap space and potentially transitioning to a younger quarterback, perhaps one they acquire in the 2024 draft.
Last offseason, Seattle signed Smith to what amounted to a multiyear “prove-it” deal. Now, Schneider is indicating that Smith must continue proving himself to the Seahawks as they usher in a new era with Macdonald as head coach.
(Photos of Geno Smith, left, and John Schneider: Matt Kartozian, Trevor Ruszkowski / USA Today)
