The Seattle Seahawks aren’t assured of having quarterback Geno Smith on the sideline for the 2024 season. Many people initially thought the Seahawks were planning to keep Smith for the season when they decided to pay him good money this offseason.
Geno Smith is getting paid
As previously discussed by John Gallatley with GH, the Seahawks will make Smith’s base salary of $12.7 million for the 2024 season guaranteed:
That question was whether or not they were going to pick up QB Geno Smith’s base salary next season. Well, the Seahawks have informed Smith of their decision. Read below to find out what that is.
According to Adam Schefter of ESPN, the Seattle Seahawks have informed Geno Smith that they plan to make his base salary for 2024 guaranteed. The Seahawks had until February 16th to make an official decision on this. Now, it appears that they have made it.
Smith is due to make $12.7 million next season in base salary. This comes after making $1.2 million in base salary this past season. It is safe to say that this is a significant raise.
The Seattle Seahawks could trade Smith
However, the Seahawks’ decision to pay Smith does not mean he will play for Seattle in the 2024 season. Per Schefter, the Seahawks decided to pay Smith in order to create value for a potential trade this offseason:
“The Seahawks believed that, with salaries soaring for starting quarterbacks in today’s market, the right decision was to guarantee Smith’s $12.7 million, sources told Schefter. Now Smith will represent a value to them — or any other team that decides to reach out to see if it can acquire Smith via trade.”
Schefter seems to think new head coach Mike Macdonald and general manager John Schneider are ready to move on from Smith if they see good value in return for the quarterback:
“Neither Schneider nor Macdonald have made public comments committing to Smith as Seattle’s starter in 2024. In his introductory news conference this month, Macdonald called Smith a “really good player” but seemed to allude to his uncertain future by saying, “we’ll see how the whole situation shakes out over time.”
Who would play QB for the Seahawks next year without Smith?
Smith’s play in 2023 wasn’t at the same level as the 2022 season when he won the NFL’s Comeback Player of the Year Award. However, he’s good enough to start in the league. The Seahawks could get a decent return for Smith in an offseason with several quarterback-needy teams that will be too far back in the draft to take a top prospect.
There is one problem for Seattle if they trade Smith. Who would they get to replace him?
Smith’s backup is Drew Lock. The Seahawks are also too far back in the draft to be assured of selecting an elite quarterback in April.
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