An Improbable Path to the Spotlight: Geno Smith’s Story

By: Henry Kvech

“They wrote me off, I ain’t write back though.” 

A phrase heard by a then record-setting 20 million Monday Night Football viewers. 

A quick three-second sound bite spoken at the end of a nail biting season opener.

A decade’s worth of struggles effortlessly spoken by embattled quarterback Geno Smith that would ultimately define his resurgence. 

So how did we get here?

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Smith first started making headlines at West Virginia University, where he played from 2009-2012. As a junior, he threw for over 4,300 yards, recording 31 touchdowns against a humbling seven interceptions. It was during his senior year, however, when Smith truly elevated his game, amassing over 4,000 yards passing, and tallying 42 touchdowns while throwing just six interceptions.

His impressive numbers sent shockwaves through the college football world, and Smith was immediately labeled a top Heisman candidate, though would later fall out of contention. Still, the buzz surrounding his playmaking ability culminated in Smith being a projected first rounder, with many believing he had the skills to be taken No. 1 in the draft. Smith improved each year throughout college, and many eagerly waited to see how great he could be in the league, regardless which team drafted him.

At the combine, Smith continued to impress, evident by Next Gen stats’ draft model (a score given on a range from 50 to 99, and which takes into account the combine, pro day, as well as college production data). Smith scored an 81, the highest score of all QB’s in that year's draft.

Up until the draft, Smith’s career trajectory increased steadily.

Then came April 25, 2013. 

The first day of the draft ended as it began; despite there being a multitude of quarterback needy teams, Smith sat in the draft room to take witness to his name never being called.

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As it turns out, executives from around the league believed that Smith had a leadership problem: when he visited various teams before draft day, he spent much of his time on his phone texting friends or checking twitter, instead of being engaged with coaches and the front office. As it not so shockingly turns out, this did not impress teams from around the league. It wasn’t until day two of the draft where his name was called, selected by the New York Jets with the 39th overall pick. 

Following the draft day slide, Smith fired two of his agents. He denied that it was because of where he was selected in the draft, but skepticism crept in and quickly gave Smith a bad reputation around the league.

In direct contrast to how he had started his career, it seemed as though Smith could not catch a break. Despite posting a promising 8-8 record in his rookie season, his stats were anything but. A touchdown to interception ratio of 12 to 21 prevented the Jets from reaching the playoffs, and strengthened critics’ claims that Smith would never become a franchise quarterback. 

His sophomore season sent him further down the drain, going 3-10 in his 13 starts, with a completion percentage of less than 60 percent, and a touchdown to interception ratio of 13 to 13. His highlights were few and far between, and it already looked like his career was over. 

Despite being at rock bottom, he would find a way to sink lower.

It was in a locker room on August 11, 2015, where Smith’s career should have ended. Linebacker and Jet teammate IK Enemkpali punched Smith during an altercation, one that broke Smith’s jaw. It became abundantly clear that the league, coaches and players alike, was done with Geno Smith. 

That next season opened with veteran Ryan Fitzpatrick assuming Smith’s role of starting quarterback in his absence. Fitzpatrick took this chance and ran with it, going 10-6 as the starter. This was it. Smith’s career had never even gotten off the runway. He spent another season backing up Fitzpatrick before he was off the Jets for good.

​Following his release, Smith did what many struggling QB’s do: bounce around the league in brief stints with multiple teams. His first stop was with the Giants, where he sat under Super Bowl winning quarterback Eli Manning. He spent a year there before taking his talents to the Chargers. This time, he sat under the legendary Phillip Rivers. Yet another year went by, and yet another team came; this time it was the Seattle Seahawks with quarterback and MVP candidate Russell Wilson.​

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The pattern was easy to see: three teams, three great quarterbacks above Smith in the depth chart. He was never brought to these teams to compete for the starting job; instead, he was seen as a cheap backup that each team hoped would never have to play. But this most likely was seen differently in Smith’s eyes. He knew that learning under these great quarterbacks could help him, and he soon got the chance to prove it.

Smith served as the backup to Wilson for three years before something major happened. In a trade that sent the NFL world into a spiral, Wilson, the Super Bowl champion and perennial Pro Bowler, was traded to the Denver Broncos. The Seahawks received two first-round picks, two second-round picks, a fifth-rounder, and three Bronco players, all for Wilson and a fourth-rounder. This move made analysts and fans alike view the Broncos as immediate Super Bowl contenders. The Seahawks were a team that had consistently made the playoffs under Wilson, and with him gone, many thought they would fall off a cliff. With one of the league's worst defenses, to pair with one of the worst offensive lines, Smith was not set up for success. But hey, if we look at the bright side, Smith had just spent almost a decade being a backup and it was finally his time to try and prove the doubters wrong.

Or was it?

In the trade package, the Broncos sent quarterback Drew Lock, and the Seahawks viewed him as their starter. Despite Smith being on the team for three years, and despite him biding his time, he continued to watch games from the sidelines. 

Was this it? An entire football career come and gone, and all he had to show for it was a couple good seasons way back in college? If Smith could not even be a starter on one of the supposed worst teams in the league, then what was the point? 

The first couple preseason games had gone by, and things were looking bleak for Smith. That is, until the very final preseason matchup. Lock and the Seahawks lost 27-26 to the Dallas Cowboys, a game in which Lock threw three interceptions. With this performance, Smith was thrust into the starting role, just 17 days before the regular season.

After a terrible start to his career, a broken jaw suffered at the hand of his teammate, and almost a decade's worth of serving time as a backup, Smith was finally a starter again. Making it back to that position in itself is impressive especially after all of his hardships, but the hard work was just beginning. Entering the season, Vegas’ line for the Seahawks total wins was 5.5, or good enough for the second worst in the league. It was clear to most that Smith and the Seahawks would be battling for the title of worst team in the league, with some experts even predicting that the Seahawks would fail to win a single game.

When week one rolled around, who would the Seahawks face but the Denver Broncos, with the Hawks’ old quarterback in Wilson. Smith and his men entered the game as a touchdown underdog at home, a rarity in the sport. Despite what the analysts, franchises and fans from across the sport all thought, the Seahawks emerged victorious. In a close 17-16 contest, Smith threw two touchdowns and kept the ball out of harm's way.

It seemed like a storybook ending, a true David vs. Goliath story, but it wasn’t over just yet. Smith partook in a post-game midfield interview where he was asked, “To the folks that had written you off… what do you say to them?” Smith, overcome with emotion, remembering his years of struggle and heartbreak, said resiliently, “They wrote me off, I ain’t write back though.”

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Smith moved forward in the season as the team's starter, and it soon became apparent that his first game was no fluke. 

At midseason, a four-game win streak had the Seahawks sitting at 6-3, already having surpassed the total amount of wins Vegas set for them. By the end of the season, Smith led the Seahawks to the playoffs, and set the franchise record for single season passing yards, a record previously held by Russell Wilson. This stellar season led to Smith participating in his first Pro Bowl, and becoming the Comeback Player of the Year at the NFL Honors award show. 

After seven consecutive years of one-year contracts, seven consecutive years of uncertainty for the next year, Smith had finally earned a real contract. Three years, $75 million. The deal Smith secured was over five times the amount of all his previous career earnings, or about $14.8 million.​

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Smith proved that this first season was no mistake: during his second year as the starter, he led his team to yet another winning season, and earned another start in the Pro Bowl. Questions arose in the offseason about his age and how he could still produce in his third season starting. He silenced everyone yet again with a 10-7 record, once again breaking his own single season franchise passing record. 

In the following offseason, Smith was traded to the Raiders, where he earned another large contract, this time a staggering 2 years, $75 million. Entering his age 35 season, Smith continues to prove people wrong. From his draft day slide, to a decade of being a backup, Smith has been through it all. Throughout the journey he stayed humble, and maintained a strong work ethic. 

Most people in his position would have quit, but he battled and stayed the course. Perhaps it’s this model in perseverance and tenacity we can all learn from, a lesson to people from all walks of life. 

As for Smith’s lesson? 

After all of his battles, Smith reflected on his struggles, and proudly stated, “My tough times would be a dream to someone else … For me, I just had to stay patient until I had the opportunity.”

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