Is Geno Smith starting to lose the confidence of his teammates?
That’s a question that has come up in recent weeks, and former Raiders offensive lineman Lincoln Kennedy talked this week about something he has noticed that might hint in that direction.
“I see more and more things. And this is a big thing to me, because this is big in body language. I don’t see a lot of offense linemen picking up Geno Smith when he’s down,” Kennedy said on the Locked on Raiders Squad Show podcast.
“The reason why I say that is because we have a measure of pride in the offensive line room. We don’t leave one of our guys on the ground too long. Even if it wasn’t your man that hit him, quarterback goes down, you go over to pick him up, help him up, give him help in hand.”
“I don’t know what that translates into in the locker room,” Kennedy continued. “I’m not saying that there’s a level of disconnect between Geno and the players. I’m just saying from this body language and this record, this is what you’re going to get. And it’s probably going to get worse.”
Kennedy’s point is a good one, and with the Raiders struggling to get anything right this season, it’s a going to be difficult for all the players and coaches to stay positive.
Nevertheless, this isn’t the first time it has seemed like Smith’s teammates have been a little indifferent toward him. That’s not to suggest they don’t like him or want him as a teammate, but they don’t always seem to respond to him, either.
In terms of body language, Smith and the offensive line weren’t the only ones showing frustration in week 12.
Even Maxx Crosby and veteran linebacker Elandon Roberts got into a little scuffle on the sideline during Sunday’s game.
Even by the lowly standard the organization has set in recent years, the Raiders appear to have reached a new low in 2025.
The team’s $75 million quarterback appears to be a bust. There are as few as five starting caliber players on the roster going into next year, and there seems to be unrest at every level of the organization, including the executive side of the operation.
“There are, of course, on field problems, but there are also a lot of problems off the field behind the scenes,” former Raiders’ CEO Amy Trask said on CBS Sports HQ last week.
“Many people assume when I say ‘behind the scenes’ that I’m referring to Tom Brady, but I’m not. The individual who orchestrated Tom’s purchase in the Raiders of the limited partnership interest in the Raiders, Jim Gray, has been working to orchestrate the purchase of an interest in the Raiders since Al [Davis] was alive and we were in the process of selling a minority interest in the team,” Trask continued.
“Well, he finally orchestrated the purchase and now he is involved in every aspect, or almost every aspect, of the organization. This is having an impact on the organization, not only off the field, but on the field. Pete Carroll is a very good head coach, but the problems we’re seeing on the field are related to the problems that are rampant throughout the organization. They’ve got to fix the off-field behind the scenes issues in order to give Pete a chance to be his best.”
Trask didn’t offer more details on the ownership dynamic that is apparently causing problems behind the scenes, but these kinds of stories don’t tend to stay in the shadows for long.
x: @raidersbeat