ESPN insider outlines boundaries for potential Seahawks-Geno Smith deal

When the Seattle Seahawks traded Russell Wilson away in 2022, the team looked to Geno Smith to ease the transition. The former second-round pick exceeded expectations as the starting quarterback, passing for 12,226 yards, 71 touchdowns and 35 interceptions over the last three seasons.

Beyond putting up good numbers, Smith has led the team to nine or more wins each year. With just one year left on his contract, the veteran quarterback is overdue for an extension. Seahawks general manager John Schneider said the team was working with Smith's agent on a new deal.

So how much would Seattle be willing to pay the 34-year-old? According to ESPN's Brady Henderson, the team is unlikely to make Smith one of the NFL's highest-paid quarterbacks.

"Given what has been the team's lukewarm view of Smith as its long-term answer, plus the fact that he's coming off another up-and-down season, Schneider's comments reflected this possibility: Seattle is prepared to give the quarterback an extension that will come with a reasonable raise, but that Schneider would let him play out the final year of the deal -- or explore a potential trade -- in lieu of paying him anywhere near the top of the market," wrote Henderson.

Smth has a cap hit of $44.5 million this season, which is a relative bargain considering his production. While it sounds like the Seahawks want to keep Smith around, they aren't in great shape with the salary cap and giving him a huge contract would make it hard to keep building the roster.

Reasonably, it's going to be hard to pay him less than $50 million per year considering the current QB market. The Seahawks should not take Smith's contributions for granted and alienate the player who's helped the team remain competitive in the post-Russell Wilson era.

The Seahawks have been named among teams who could draft a quarterback in the first round, but it probably makes more sense to target one in the middle rounds and offer Smith an extension.

A quality starting quarterback is one of the toughest things to find in this league, and right now, the Seahawks have one.

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