Seahawks GM: No talks on new contract for Geno Smith. They’ll let this season play out

Nothing new on the Seahawks and Geno Smith.

This season will largely decide his future.

General manager John Schneider said following practice Wednesday neither he nor any team official has had talks with Seattle’s 33-year-old Pro Bowl quarterback or Smith’s representatives regarding a new contract. Smith’s current deal ends after the 2025 season.

NFL Network had reported otherwise.

Asked if he or the team has discussed a new contract with Smith or his agents, Schneider said, flatly: “No.”

Two weeks ago, during an interview with Seattle-based Puck Sports, Jason Puckett’s podcast, NFL Network’s Mike Garafolo said about Smith and his agents and a new deal with the Seahawks: “They’ve talked about it. They’ve tried to talk about it. I know that. That’s been something that’s been broached this offseason.

“So, you know, could it be something that gets done before week one and is addressed by the team...?”

It won’t and it wasn’t, Schneider said Wednesday.

“Like ‘broached’ a new contract? I’ll leave contract stuff aside,” the GM said. “There’s a lot of people that want contract extensions, and I’m not going to get into specifics of, like, specifics of who they are and all that. But that’s part of the job.

“I mean, it happens every year, all the time.”

Smith has this season and next remaining on the three-year, $75 million contract extension he signed before last season. That was months after he broke three of Russell Wilson’s team records for passing during the 2022 season, when he led the NFL in completion percentage, threw for 4,282 yards, started his first career playoff game and made his first Pro Bowl.

Schneider, in his 14 years as Seattle’s general manager has typically struck new deals with the team’s foundational players going into the final years of their contracts. In Smith’s case, that would be this time next year.

This offsesason Smith’s contract called for all of his $12.7 million in base salary for 2024 to be guaranteed. Then in March he received a roster bonus of another $9.7 million. He entered this preseason with the 12th-highest salary cap charge for this year among all NFL quarterbacks.

Smith has no guaranteed money remaining on his contract beyond this year. His salary-cap charge for 2025 is scheduled to be $38.5 million, up from $26.4 million this year.

The Seahawks assuredly aren’t going to absorb all that $38.5 million cap charge for Smith for 2025.

If he stays healthy this season and plays at the Pro Bowl-selection level he’s been at his first two seasons replacing Wilson as Seattle’s QB, the team likely would think next offseason about offering him a new contract. It would likely be back-loaded, creating a more team-friendly cap charge for 2025.

Or, if Smith plays poorly this season, his team could release the then-34-year-old Smith and save $25 million on that $38.5 million cap charge for 2025.

Smith’s play will determine whether, and when, Schneider and the Seahawks entertain talks on a new contract for Smith.

Schneider’s assessment of Smith’s training camp and 4-for-5 passing night in the final preseason game Saturday, his only game action this month?

“I thought Geno looked amazing,” the GM said.

Backup quarterback Sam Howell, the 2023 Washington Commanders starter Schneider traded for this spring, is under contract through 2025.

Howell, 23, had an up-and-down Seahawks training camp through this month. He was alarmingly inaccurate with his throws the first practices of camp. He improved in the later weeks and had some impressive throws in Seattle’s three preseason games. He also stepped into sacks and trouble at times in the pocket.

Former NFL and University of Washington quarterback Hugh Millen, football analyst for KJR-FM radio in Seattle, talked to The News Tribune on the station Wednesday. The TNT asked Millen what the Seahawks’ quarterback situation should look like for 2025 beyond.

He answered by describing Sam Howell, so far.

”In my opinion,” Millen said, “I do not believe he is the quarterback of the future for the Seattle Seahawks.”

For now, Smith and Howell are Seattle’s only quarterbacks. Schneider said the team is seeking to sign a third soon.

“P.J. (Walker) may be back,” the GM said, referring to the team’s third QB in training camp the Seahawks released Tuesday.

“I’m not sure. We’re still working through a lot of that stuff.”