'Never felt like Seattle was my team': Geno Smith expected Seahawks divorce
It's been six months since Geno Smith and the Seattle Seahawks parted ways in an offseason trade with the Las Vegas Raiders. The divorce has only gotten messier since.
In an extensive interview with ESPN reporter Ryan McFadden, Smith revealed feelings ranging from not fitting the Seattle culture to his personality rubbing the Seahawks' front office the wrong way to never feeling like it was his team after following in the footsteps of Russell Wilson.
From 2019-24, Smith appeared in 54 total games for the Seahawks, completing 68.5% of his passes and tossing 76 touchdowns to 36 interceptions. He earned a pair of Pro Bowl nods in 2022 and 2023.
Smith started 52 total games for the Seahawks, with most coming from 2022-24 when he was the full-time starter for three seasons. It was his first starting role since 2014 with the New York Jets, where he was drafted. Still, Smith didn't hold back on his former team.
"I finally got my team," Smith said of his new situation with the Raiders, per McFadden. "I always felt like I was trying to replace Russell [Wilson in Seattle], and you can never replace all the great things that he did. So I never felt like Seattle was my team.
"Also, I didn't feel like I fit the aesthetic of the Seattle organization. The Raiders just fit me."
Smith indicated he "didn't fit the culture" of the city itself because of "how I was raised and act" after growing up in Miami, Florida. That personality also rubbed people in the Seahawks' front office the wrong way, Smith said.
"If it rubs somebody the wrong way, good," Smith added. "Those aren't the people I want to go to war with. I want people who really go die about [winning] because that's how I am."
Former Seahawks coach Pete Carroll, who is now the head coach of the Raiders, gave Smith his chance to return to a starting role when the team traded Wilson after the 2021 season. That lasted for two seasons until Carroll left Seattle after the 2023 season, which he has now said was a mutual decision between the Super Bowl-winning coach and the franchise.
When Carroll was hired by the Raiders, Smith said he "knew [Carroll] would be coming for me, and it was a matter of time before it happened."
That was also because, due to the state of the negotiations between Smith and the Seahawks, Smith felt 2024 would be his final season with the team as they entered the season. Much of that feeling came from the fact that Smith wasn't getting clarity from the franchise on its long-term plans at quarterback.
"They didn't have a definitive answer [on his future in Seattle]. ... It was kind of up in the air," Smith said. "And so for me, going into the [2024] season, I was like, 'OK, well, this may be my last season here.' I literally had a playlist called 'The Last Dance.' I wanted to go out there and give it my all for my teammates."
Regardless, conversations clearly muddied between Smith and the Seahawks, and it seems to have reached a point of no return — eventually leading to the trade. Seattle went out and acquired Sam Darnold, who is also a quarterback seeking a long-term career revival, while also being six years younger than Smith.
Even though Smith originally wanted to stay in Seattle long-term, he said, Carroll was also critical to his success. That pair is now back together in Las Vegas, and the Seahawks have a potentially above-average quarterback in replacement. In some ways, both sides won.
"I felt like I [had] done all I could do," Smith said of final negotiations with the Seahawks. "I showed them who I am, and if they wanted to go a different direction, so be it."
Steelers' Jalen Ramsey embraces 'vicious player' label applied to him — 'I would hope so'
A member of management referencing an employee as “vicious?” That typically might necessitate the counsel of the human resources department and an attorney.
Not in the NFL — at least not as far as Jalen Ramsey is concerned.
Five days after Pittsburgh Steelers assistant general manager Andy Weidl called Ramsey “a vicious player,” the veteran defensive back said he liked that label.
“I would hope so,” Ramsey said after Tuesday’s practice at UPMC Rooney Sports Complex. “I’m playing football, you know, so I would hope that’s an accurate description for anybody.”
Weidl, of course, was complimenting the 30-year-old Ramsey while he was speaking with reporters last week.
“You watch him hit, watch the mentality he plays with — he is aggressive,” Weidl said. “He’s a violent hitter. That mindset becomes contagious. Guys like that, an elite talent like that, elite football IQ in the physicality that he plays with, that becomes contagious. I’ve seen it different places. We have a physical group to begin with, and adding a guy like that is just great. I think it just becomes even more contagious to the room when you bring a guy with that mindset and that ability.”
A three-time AP NFL All-Pro, Ramsey embraces setting a standard with his demeanor as much as he does with his on-field play as a coverage cornerback and sure-tackling safety.
The Steelers acquired Ramsey in a trade announced June 30 that also included tight end Jonnu Smith and a swap of late-round draft picks in addition to the Steelers submitting former All-Pro safety Minkah Fitzpatrick to the Miami Dolphins.
“I think that I’m here for various reasons,” Ramsey said. “I wouldn’t just put myself in a box of being here for one thing or another. I hope (the ‘vicious’ mindset) is contagious. I hope the way that I go out there and go about my business and play the game is contagious on my teammates in a positive way. But I think there’s a bunch of guys out here on this team already who have those intangibles anyway, and we’re just trying to put it together. Put a good product out on the field.”
Weidl referenced Ramsey as “a Hall of Fame player,” and Ramsey’s seven Pro Bowl berths and one Super Bowl ring suggest a worthy resume.
“Not only is he gifted physically — his ability, his speed, his athleticism, his ability to accelerate close, play the ball — but also his mindset,” Weidl said. “He’s an elite football IQ guy. He has a positionless quality to him, where he can line up in different positions on the defense and play at a high level.”
It’s been that latter area where Ramsey has most popped throughout training camp. From the first day at Saint Vincent late last month, Ramsey has alternated lining up at outside cornerback, in the slot/nickel and at free safety.
He’s been used to cover wide receivers and tight ends and even to blitz from the slot.
“When you go from different positions,” Ramsey said, “you have to know different roles, know different alignments, assignments and different techniques. In a couple of those roles, I have to communicate frequently, whereas in just playing outside, I don’t really have to communicate as much. I can just kind of lock in on one specific thing. So I guess that’s what makes it challenging, but it’s fun. It’s cool.”
