The Seahawks’ season came to an end on Saturday with their loss to the 49ers in the wild-card round of the playoffs. After the game, quarterback Geno Smith made a bold statement when at the lectern before he’s set to become an unrestricted free agent this offseason.
“I wanna finish my career in Seattle,” Smith said after the 41–23 loss. “I wanna be here. The town, the city, the team, coach Carroll, the organization, they all embraced me. I was a guy who probably could’ve been out of the league. They embraced me. I wanna repay them for that.”
Smith’s emergence as a top tier quarterback at 32 years old was one of the best feel-good stories of this season. After stops with the Jets, Giants and Chargers, Smith has finally found a place where he can flourish, and coach Pete Carroll seems to have no intention of letting him go anywhere in free agency either.
Carroll was asked if he was planning on having Smith be the team’s quarterback in 2023, and he said, “I hope so,” according to Gregg Bell of the Tacoma News Tribune.
Smith broke Russell Wilson’s single-season franchise passing record this year when he tallied 4,282 yards through the air while also throwing for 30 touchdowns to just 11 interceptions. The team’s playoff appearance and 9–8 record were overachievements for a team that is in the midst of a rebuild, and Seattle may have found its quarterback for the foreseeable future.
