Geno Smith is now more than halfway through what will probably go down as the most disappointing year of his NFL career.
It’s been a miserable season for Smith, and it was evident after Monday’s game that he is experiencing the same frustrations as the fan base.
On Tuesday, Raider Nation Radio host ‘JT the Brick’ used the term “turnover machine” to describe Smith, but head coach Pete Carroll has not given up on his $75 million quarterback yet.
In fact, Carroll sounded this week like he is nowhere near ready to pull the plug on the Geno Smith experiment.
“I continue to really believe in him,” Carroll said on Tuesday. “I have no hesitation in telling you that. He’s an incredible player and he’s busting his tail; he’s working at it really hard. He has not backed off one step throughout the process. He’s going to keep working it and he’ll come through for us. We just got to help him out more and protect him better.”
Carroll is right that Smith isn’t the only issue with the offense, and they have bigger issues on the roster – most notably along the offensive line.
But the issue with Smith moving forward is that he doesn’t appear to be the quarterback of the future.
With a 2-8 record on the season, the Raiders need to be looking to the future and if there is a quarterback on the roster that might be better than Smith down the road, now is the time to identify that player.
Aidan O’Connell made headlines this week when the Raiders activated him from injured reserve, but the quarterback everyone should want to see before the end of the season is sixth-round pick Cam Miller.
Not many projected Miller to be a starting quarterback at the NFL level, but some believe he was Tom Brady’s sleeper pick in the draft and the fact that the Raiders passed over Chip Kelly’s college quarterback in favor of Miller suggests someone in the building was a big fan of Miller.
When the times comes to bench Smith, O’Connell will probably get the first opportunity.
O’Connell probably deserves the opportunity, but he also has limited upside.
One of the more disappointing decisions the coaching staff could make going forward is ignoring Miller for the remainder of the season.
If only for a week or two at the end of the season, getting Miller on the field should be a priority for the organization – even if the move doesn’t bring exciting results.
x: @raidersbeat
Your kidding right? O’Connell is not a qb. We already saw what he can do the last 2 yrs. He is not the future or a starting qb in the NFL. I would have left him on IR for the rest of the year. Why don’t the raiders give Cam Miller the same opportunity they gave O’Connell. Who knows, Miller might be the qb of the future.
THE REAL REASON IS OWNERSHIP
Look, the season was over in September all right. All this talk of Player and Coach problems is a moot point wrapped in a false narrative O.K… THE REAL PROBLEM IS BRADY AND DAVIS AND UNTIL WE CALL OUT OWNERSHIP AND BOYCOTT NOTHING IS GOING TO CHANGE. THIS IS UP TO THE RN, most writers can’t say it, they will get canceled and their press passes will get revoked if they do.
The Raiders are so far under the salary cap you can’t say they are committed to winning any more. The spin this team is putting out IS THEY WANT TO build a team like Detroit? (They must think you are stupid, Amik Robertson and Rock Ya Sin start for Detroit because we were too cheap to keep them.) The raiders have thrown in the towel and they are not trying to compete anymore. You can’t fix stupid and Mark Davis is the poster child for that. Let the call ring out to abandon ship because the owners here have checked out some time ago. They caught a life raft, Brady covers other games & Davis wants to be a pop star girl group promoter. All while your team does not even show up to even compete, enough, BOYCOTT!
WEST SIDE
RN
Since 1975
If they disband the Brady Bunch, Mark will only replace them with another inept group. The guy calling the shots is the REAL problem with the team.
Give Cam Miller a shot!!!!