Seahawks news: Chris Jones, Geno Smith, Tre Brown, and John Schneider

Seahawks QB Geno Smith's contract a "grand slam" for John Schneider

According to Seattle Sports' Brock Huard, the contract the Seahawks gave to Geno Smith this offseason is looking ever-better. What was once a "home run" deal to Huard is now a "grand slam." The reason for this is that so many college quarterbacks played so well this past weekend that Seattle could decide to take one of them in the 2024 NFL draft and Smith's deal really only keeps him in Seattle for just one year.

Basically, Huard's view is more about the contract itself than the actual play of Geno Smith. Smith could earn the next two years of his deal by playing well in 2023. Or he could play his way out of Seattle with a bad performance this season. Seattle has the weapons to be very good offensively, but not if Smith isn't efficiently good.

General manager John Schneider has always had a gift for creating contracts that work for both the player and the team without blowing up the salary cap. This is one reason Schneider has been among the best general managers in the NFL. Seattle is lucky to have him and without Schneider the Seahawks would not have had the run of success they have had since 2010.

Smith has no guaranteed salary after 2023. His cap number in 2024 is $31.2 million, but his dead money would be $17.4 million. Seattle would save $14 million by releasing Smith after this year and drafting their quarterback of the future in the 2024 NFL draft. But let's hope Smith is fantastic this year and through 2025 because they should mean the team is good, too.

Other Seahawks news and analysis