One of the most unexpected stories of the 2022 NFL season came from the Seattle Seahawks. Little was expected out of the Seahawks, who had gone 7-10 in 2021 and traded star quarterback Russell Wilson to the Denver Broncos in the offseason. But behind a stellar season from quarterback Geno Smith, Seattle went 9-8 and reached the playoffs.
Throughout the offseason, Seahawks coach Pete Carroll spoke highly of both Smith and Drew Lock, who was acquired in the Wilson trade. The confidence was generally mocked, given Lock’s struggles over his three years in Denver and that Smith had been a backup for several years, starting only five games from 2015-2021. Smith’s experience in Seattle’s system gave him an edge over Lock, which he held through camp.
When the 2022 season got going, Smith rewarded Carroll and general manager John Schneider for the confidence that they had in him. And in an interview on Friday, he said that proving that Carroll and Schneider were right was something he was focused on.
“I really wanted to prove those guys right,” Smith said in an interview on SiriusXM NFL Radio. “For them to see the work that I had been putting in, because I had been putting in an immense amount of work behind the scenes, I do a lot behind the scenes. For them to recognize that meant a lot to me. And when the season came, I knew what I was gonna do. I feel like they did as well. It just had to happen.”
Smith also spoke about his ongoing contract negotiations, expressing optimism that a return to Seattle would happen.
“We’ve had talks. We’re in the process of getting all of that getting settled. It’s looking very good. We think we can get some things done. But obviously, those things take time. This is the process that I hate about the NFL because I just want to play football. But, you know, it’s a business as well. So we’ve got to take care of business and then we’ll get back to the football.”
Smith had easily the best season of his 10-year career in 2022. He completed 69.8% of his passes and threw for 4,282 yards with 30 touchdown passes, 11 interceptions and a 100.9 passer rating while starting all 17 games. For reference, the 30 touchdown passes nearly equaled his career total (34) entering the season.
[SiriusXM NFL Radio on Twitter]