Seahawks Preseason Week 1 proves a Geno Smith-less world would not be pretty

There was a lot to like about how the Seattle Seahawks played against the Los Angeles Chargers to open the 2024 preseason. To begin the game, new head coach Mike Macdonald decided to play many of his presumed defensive starters. The unit looked good and the Chargers were unable to gain a first down for several drives.

The battle for RB3 turned out to be an interesting one as well. Kenny McIntosh got a lot of the carries early and flashed the potential to break off a long run. George Holani looked solid as well, though in fewer carries. He did lay waste to a Chargers defender on a jet sweep by Dee Eskridge in the second half.

The quarterback play still has to be a bit worrisome, however, should Geno Smith get hurt. Smith did not play against the Chargers and there was no need to play him. He is definitely QB1 and he can learn Ryan Grubb's offense well enough in practice reps so he doesn't need much experience against players wearing jerseys of an opposing team.

Seahawks backup quarterbacks not overly sharp against the Los Angeles Chargers in Preseason Week 1

Presumptive QB2 Sam Howell started and played into the second half. He was extremely inconsistent. He scrambled well enough, though one might wonder if he would be able to do that successfully when a team has all their starters in the game. Howell finished 16 of 27 but for only 130 yards. He did have a touchdown pass.

While he did not throw an interception, a couple of his passes were turnover-worthy. While he was playing mostly with number twos, he was also facing mostly backups. This should have leveled the competition and Howell should have been experienced enough to be the best player on the field. While he remained poised, he also continued to throw late or inaccurately at times, something that has been a trend through training camp.

PJ Walker was worse unless he was trying to complete a third-down pass. Walker was consistently inconsistent. At times, he would throw a dart over the middle for a 14-yard completion. At another time he wouldn't come close to completing a pass down the sideline to an open receiver. He also missed seeing a blitzer on a couple of pass attempts and that would simply be inexcusable during real games.

While there are a few fans who don't care for Geno Smith, there is little doubt that as far as the quarterbacks on the roster, he definitely gives the Seahawks the best chance to win. If the defense continues to play as well as it did against the Chargers, the Seahawks could be a dangerous playoff team with Smith. With Howell or Walker? Not so much.

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