Las Vegas has found its man at quarterback, while Seattle has embraced a full reset, as the Raiders have traded a 2025 third-round pick to the Seahawks in exchange for quarterback Geno Smith, NFL Network and ESPN reported Friday.
Smith, a full-time starter in Seattle the past three seasons with two Pro Bowl nods, will be reunited with former Seahawks coach Pete Carroll, whom the Raiders hired this offseason.
Carroll, 73, was out of coaching last year after mutually agreeing with the Seahawks to step down as head coach. He stayed on as an advisor.
Smith was Carroll’s starting quarterback his final two seasons, piloting the Seahawks to matching 9-8 records after taking over for Russell Wilson, who was traded away before the 2022 season.
That year, his first as a full-time starter in Seattle, was Smith’s most successful, as he threw for 4,282 yards and a career-high 30 touchdowns against just 11 interceptions, leading the Seahawks to the playoffs.
The follow-up year netted fewer passing yards (3,624) and touchdowns (20) as Smith missed two games to injury. Last year, under new coach Mike Macdonald, Smith rebounded to throw for 4,320 yards and 21 touchdowns (albeit with 15 interceptions) while leading Seattle to a 10-7 record.
Smith was drafted by the New York Jets in the second round in 2013 after a highly productive college career at West Virginia. He started 29 games over his first two seasons before being relegated to the bench, bouncing to the New York Giants and Los Angeles Chargers before landing in Seattle in 2019.
Now, much like Carroll, he figures to be a steadying influence for a franchise that has struggled to find success with just two winning seasons over the past 22 years.
Las Vegas was 4-13 under former head coach Antonio Pierce last season. Gardner Minshew II, Aidan O’Connell and Desmond Ridder platooned at quarterback.
–Field Level Media
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