Seahawks Allowing Geno Smith Contract to Guarantee, Trade Still on Table

Alan Saunders |

Updated: Feb 15, 2024

Geno Smith Steelers playoff — Seattle Seahawks quarterback Geno Smith during a game against the Pittsburgh Steelers on Oct. 18, 2021. -- Ed Thompson / Steelers Now

The Seattle Seahawks will allow the contract of quarterback Geno Smith to become guaranteed by keeping him on their roster through Friday’s deadline, but have not ruled out trading their starting quarterback, according to a report by Adam Schefter of ESPN.

Seahawks QB Geno Smith, who has $12.7 million in his contract that becomes fully-guaranteed on Friday, was informed today that he will remain on the roster through this week, allowing that money to trigger, sources tell ESPN.

The $12.7 million now converts from injury guaranteed… pic.twitter.com/CNz6rSFBnF

— Adam Schefter (@AdamSchefter) February 15, 2024

Geno Smith, former West Virginia and current Seahawks starting quarterback, was informed on Thursday that he would remain on Seattle’s roster through the week, allowing him to collect a fully-guaranteed contract of $12.7 million, Schefter reported. Smith’s contract becomes fully guaranteed on Friday.

The Seahawks moved on from head coach Pete Carroll and offensive coordinator Shane Waldron this offseason, replacing them with former Baltimore Ravens defensive coordinator Mike Macdonald and former Washington Huskies offensive coordinator Ryan Grubb. With Smith a holdover from the previous regime and his deal set to guarantee for the upcoming season this week, there had been speculation that the Seahawks would look to move on from Smith.

But according to Schefter, Seattle looked around the league and realized that Smith’s contract represents a bargain compared to the free agent market, and even if they decide they want to trade him at a later date, they did not need to make a move before the contract guaranteed.

“The Seahawks believed that, in today’s market, with salaries soaring for starting quarterbacks, the right decision was to pay the money, per sources,” Schefter wrote. “Now Geno Smith will represent a value to them – or any other team that decides to reach out to see if it can acquire Smith via trade. But Seattle now has locked in Smith, and Smith has locked in his $12.7 million.

The Steelers are in the market for a quarterback to pair with Kenny Pickett, and could be interested in Smith, though the Seahawks would likely require significant compensation to part with their starting quarterback. Smith is signed through the end of the 2025 season and is set to earn $$25 million in 2025. He would cost the Seahawks a $17.4 million dead cap hit if traded this offseason.

Smith finished the season with 3,624 yards passing, 21 total touchdowns and nine interceptions. Smith also completed 64.7% of his passes in 15 games. Smith’s efforts this season earned him a Pro Bowl invitation for a second straight year. In 2022, Smith won the NFL Comeback Player of the Year award with over 4,000 passing yards and 30 touchdowns.

A version of this story first appeared at our partner site, West Virginia Sports Now.