The Raiders upgraded their quarterback room in the offseason, but where does Geno Smith rank among his peers at the quarterback position?
Quarterback debates are familiar territory for Raider fans and in a survey this week by The Athletic’s Mike Sando, Smith came in as the no. 19 quarterback in the league behind players like Trevor Lawrence and Tua Tagovailoa.
Matthew Stafford, who the Raiders tried to swing a trade for in March, landed in the top QB tier among coaches and executives surveyed, and Lamar Jackson settled in at no. 4 behind Josh Allen, Joe Burrow and Patrick Mahomes.
But it was a series of comments in Sando’s column from an anonymous coach and a couple of coordinators that should provide the Raiders and their $75 million quarterback a little extra motivation going into the season.
“Geno is pretty good at everything, but nothing stands out as an elite trait,” a defensive coordinator told Sando. “There is not one X-Man power where you are like f—, this guy.”
“Others see Smith as a quarterback whose team will always be looking to upgrade, with one defensive coordinator suggesting Smith doesn’t solve post-snap coverage rotations quickly enough, leading to turnovers and negative plays,” Sando continued.
“‘He is a game manager who is going to turn the ball over and can’t carry it,’ a coach with multiple games against Smith said. ‘Even when the team is good, you are always going to feel like we don’t quite have the guy.'”
There were coaches and executives that thought highly of Smith, but the doubters are the ones that stand out this time of year.
Rankings don’t mean much (or anything for that matter), but it’s interesting to see how the league views the Raiders’ quarterback room at the moment.
With a $6 million offensive coordinator in the building, along with the NFL’s best tight end and the top running back prospect to enter the league since Saquon Barkley, Smith should have every opportunity to change the negative narratives around him (and the team) in the next five months.
x: @raidersbeat
I think that’s a pretty accurate ranking, he could also drop a couple spots and still think it’s pretty accurate.
Nix, Williams, Penix, McCarthy, Maye all should be higher than Geno. Darnold is a good comp. Young and Fields have potential to move ahead as well. Sanders might end up taking the Cle job he’d be a comp. Just because Geno is wearing Silver & Black doesn’t mean he’s suddenly a great QB. He tries and he’s OK but is he really going to make a difference?
4th in accuracy and total yards in 2024. If Kelly cleans up the turnovers, and the O line shows up we shall see