Smith Will Help the Raiders Significantly Improve in This Area

The Las Vegas Raiders added Geno Smith during the offseason. He will help them improve in an area they have recently struggled in.

Darrell Craig Harris, ON SI

The Las Vegas Raiders may have made the most underrated, yet impactful moved of any team this summer, when they traded a third-round pick in exchange for a dependable signal caller.

After starting five different quarterbacks over the past two seasons. Las Vegas is depending on quarterback Geno Smith to expedite their turnaround.

Dalton Wasserman of Pro Football Focus recently analyzed the Raiders' roster heading into the 2025 season. Wasserman noted one area in which Smith does exceptionally well.

Aug 7, 2025; Seattle, Washington, USA; Las Vegas Raiders quarterback Geno Smith (7) after the game against the Seattle Seahawks at Lumen Field. Mandatory Credit: Steven Bisig-Imagn Images | Steven Bisig-Imagn Images

"Smith’s surface-level 2024 stats don’t jump off the page, but he was saddled with poor pass protection and inconsistent play calling. His 82.4 PFF passing grade ranked eighth among qualified quarterbacks, which is the same as his ranking if the timeframe were extended to 2022," Wasserman said.

"One thing that has held firm for Smith is his excellent deep ball. He ranked fourth in the NFL last season with a 95.1 deep PFF passing grade, and he leads the NFL with a perfect 99.9 deep PFF passing grade over the past three years."

In training camp, Smith and the Raiders have emphasized pushing the ball down the field. Smith routinely works on his deep passes to various wide receivers during practice to solidify the chemistry between him and his new receivers.

This is noteworthy, as the Raiders have struggled to push the ball down the field through the air over the past two seasons.

Following their preseason loss to the San Francisco 49ers, Pete Carroll noted that he noticed Smith's unique abilities while he was a backup to Russell Wilson when all three were in Seattle.

Aug 7, 2025; Seattle, Washington, USA; Las Vegas Raiders head coach Pete Carroll during the first half against the Seattle Seahawks at Lumen Field. Mandatory Credit: Steven Bisig-Imagn Images | Steven Bisig-Imagn Images

"Yeah, I think it was probably in the middle of those first couple of years, and you'd just see him maintain the competitive edge because it's kind of hard to believe that a guy could compete like he's going to play. What I keep telling you is the very next play, he knew he could be in. He seemed like he held onto that long enough, I sensed that and respected that. And his arm talent was always there, the ability to throw and rip the ball, so I was cheerleading for him," Carroll said.

"And that's kind of when he finally got his chance, I might have been his biggest cheerleader because he had waited and deserved it, and he came in and played really well and almost won a game that way, and then played well the next couple weeks. That was, at the time, when he finally got his chance, and he got out there, he demonstrated it, but you could sense it earlier than that just because he was so dedicated and he looked so good in practice all the time."

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