‘I want to be here’: Geno Smith says he expects to re-sign with Seahawks
SANTA CLARA, Calif. – An hour after the Seahawks’ 41-23 playoff loss to the 49ers, Geno Smith stepped to the podium for his postgame news conference sporting a royal blue suit with a Seahawks pin on his left lapel.
He was emotional and candid when discussing his breakthrough season, his performance Saturday at Levi’s Stadium and his pending free agency.
Smith said he expects to return to the Seahawks on a new contract.
“I want to finish my career in Seattle. I want to be here,” he said. “The town, the city, the team, coach (Pete) Carroll, the organization – they all embraced me. You know, I was a guy who probably could have been out of the league. They embraced me … at a time when not many people were, and that means a lot to me.
“I got a lot of loyalty in me. And I want to repay those guys for doing that.”
Smith’s performance in Saturday’s loss played out much like his season. He was brilliant early, competing 9 of 10 passes for 104 yards in the first half, including a perfectly thrown 50-yard touchdown pass to DK Metcalf that gave the Seahawks a 14-13 lead in the second quarter.
He was uneven after that, committing two second-half turnovers as the 49ers pulled away.
Smith finished 25 of 35 for 253 yards with two touchdowns, one lost fumble, one interception and a passer rating of 98.9.
“What I can take from this game and really the season, out of all the great things that we did – all the accolades, all the great stats – there’s still so much room for improvement,” Smith said. “There are so many ways we can be so much better. And I believe it starts with me, so the new season for me starts today.”
Smith, 32, is a free agent . He signed one-year free-agent deals with the Seahawks in each of the past four offseasons, serving as Russell Wilson’s backup from 2019-21.
His late-career breakthrough was one of the better stories of the season in the NFL, and he went on to set franchise records in pass completions (399), yards (4,282) and completion percentage (69.8) and earning the first Pro Bowl nod of his career.
“It’s a great story,” Carroll said. “It’s a great story for a lot of players in other sports. Wherever you want to go, if you keep hanging in there and you believe in yourself and you don’t let the messaging outside of you affect who you are and what you are, you’ll find your best. And I think Geno’s found his best and he’s ready to come back and go again. I thought he just had an unbelievably great season for us.”
Carroll was asked if he expects Smith to return in 2023.
“I hope so,” Carroll said. “I hope so.”
Metcalf echoed that sentiment.
“It’s very exciting when you get to see a person go from backup quarterback to stepping in and being a starter and then just making leaps and bounds in one year,” Metcalf said.
“I could tell he was focused from the offseason. We talked every day. He would text me every night, just checking on me. So I can tell he’s ready, you know, to lead this team and to be back next year.”
Smith wasn’t named a team captain coming into the season, but Metcalf said Smith gradually become the unquestioned leader early in the season.
“You could just see the team shift and start listening to Geno more,” he said. “Everybody just started to gravitate toward him and what he was saying and just started to believe in him more.”
And Smith believes better days are ahead for him and for this team.
“You’re only as good as your last game, so this is the one that’s going to sting us for the entire offseason,” he said. “It’s going to motivate me every single day that I wake up to go to workouts. I’m going to think about this a lot, because it hurts that bad. I want to keep playing.
“Man, hats off to my teammates. Hats off to the 49ers. They did a great job. But I’m ready to get going.”