Seahawks corner Riq Woolen is fast but Geno Smith just proved he was faster

Some 12s doubt the ability of quarterback Geno Smith. QB1 of the Seattle Seahawks was a backup for much of his career after beginning as a starter and then sitting behind players such as Eli Manning, Philip Rivers, and Russell Wilson. Since becoming the starter in Seattle in 2022, he has led the NFC in touchdown passes once and the NFL in game-winning drives once. He is a good quarterback.

And as it turns out, Smith is a lot faster than people might assume as well. The quarterback has flashed some ability to break the pocket and run down the field for yards. Maybe because of his running size and height, Smith looks slower than a smaller player, but he is not.

We know this based on a tweet from The 33rd Team who posted the times of Seattle players who ran during recent voluntary workouts. DK Metcalf did not have a time as he must not have run to be timed, but cornerback Riq Woolen (who ran a 4.26 40 before he was drafted in 2022) and running back Kenneth Walker II (who ran a 4.38 40 at the 2022 NFL Combine) were timed and both were outrun by Smith. This was based on top speed in MPH.

Seattle Seahawks quarterback Geno Smith faster than many expect

Smith reached 21.67 MPH which was the highest on the team. Woolen was second-fasted at 21.53. Walker was far down the list at 19.17. Also of note, long-snapper Chris Stoll's top speed was 19.05 which is really fast for someone of his position.

But while Smith reposted the tweet showing the speeds, he did not say anything to draw attention to how fast he was. Instead, he simply said, "Motivation to work harder because I’m still getting better." To be fair, that is what 12s should want from their quarterback. Seahawks fans might also be happy that even though Smith has probably been better than most expected as QB1, he has not gotten the love that many other quarterbacks have. Why is anyone's guess, however?

This means Geno Smith still has the mentality to keep proving himself even though he has been to two straight Pro Bowls. He has been good enough to win games, but he wants to be even better.

Maybe new offensive coordinator Ryan Grubb will put Smith's speed and running ability to better use this coming season as well. Former OC Shane Waldron did not seem to be able to do that. Adding facets to Smith's game should mean the Seahawks' offense is more efficient and scores more and that should mean another win or two. That should be enough to get back into the playoffs in 2024.

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