NFL Rumors: Geno Smith Won't Be Cut by Seahawks, $12.7M Salary to Be Fully Guaranteed

Geno Smith isn't going anywhere, at least not yet.

ESPN's Adam Schefter reported Thursday that the Seattle Seahawks told the quarterback he will remain on the team through at least this week so the $12.7 million in his contract that becomes fully guaranteed on Friday can trigger and change from injury guaranteed to fully guaranteed.

Schefter provided more details:

Smith signed a three-year, $75 million contract with the team ahead of the 2023 campaign, but Friday was something of a deadline for the Seahawks.

In January, ESPN's Brady Henderson explained the quarterback's $12.7 million in base salary for 2024 was set to become fully guaranteed on Feb. 16. There was also the $47.5 million of total money remaining on his contract serving as a backdrop.

However, Seattle would face "non-prohibitive cap penalties" of $17.4 million in dead money by either cutting him prior to that Feb. 16 deadline or trading him before March 17.

Bob Condotta of the Seattle Times noted Smith failed to hit 2023 incentives for passing touchdowns, completion percentage and passer rating that could have meant he was owed up to $15 million more in 2024.

That seemed to make the option of keeping him on the deal he signed ahead of the 2023 campaign more attractive, and the Seahawks may decide to do just that.

In that case, Smith could continue with the club that helped him turn his career around following a slow start. The 2013 second-round pick of the New York Jets never lived up to expectations across four seasons with his first team when he went 12-18 as a starter with 28 touchdown passes to 36 interceptions.

From there, he bounced around as a backup for the New York Giants and Los Angeles Chargers before backing up Russell Wilson with the Seahawks in 2020 and 2021. Just when it seemed like he was on his way to a career as a backup, Seattle traded Wilson to the Denver Broncos.

Smith won the starting job in 2022 and turned into one of the league's best stories by going 9-8 with a league-best 69.8 completion percentage for 4,282 yards, 30 touchdowns and 11 interceptions. He was recognized as a Pro Bowler and the Comeback Player of the Year and parlayed those efforts into his new deal.

Even though he was once again a Pro Bowler in 2023, his numbers dipped as he completed 64.7 percent of his passes for 3,624 yards, 20 touchdowns and nine interceptions while dealing with some inconsistency throughout the season.

That set the stage for an offseason of uncertainty, and Henderson pointed out former head coach Pete Carroll was "perhaps his biggest supporter in the organization" who was "repeatedly deflecting blame away from the quarterback."

Yet Carroll is no longer the head coach, and though he's now an adviser for the team, his opinion likely won't hold as much weight as it did before.

Still, the Seahawks decided to stick with Smith for now as they attempt to improve on two straight 9-8 seasons.