Panthers OC Ben McAdoo Declares Himself a 'Geno Guy'

A reunion in Seattle.

Ben McAdoo, the offensive coordinator for the Carolina Panthers, is a big fan of former West Virginia star and current Seattle Seahawks starting quarterback, Geno Smith.

The two spent one year together with the New York Giants in 2017 when McAdoo was the head coach and Smith served as the backup to Eli Manning. McAdoo infamously made the decision to yank Manning out of the starting lineup toward the end of the year, putting an end to his consecutive starts streak. Smith had a decent day completing 21-of-34 passes for 212 yards and a score, but New York fell to the Raiders 24-17. McAdoo went back to Manning the very next week, tossing Smith back to his backup role.

Five years later, the two meet again and are looking to rewrite the narrative surrounding them. Smith has done a good job of that leading the Seahawks to a 7-5 record and is sitting in the top five of most passing categories. Not only is Smith in the conversation for Comeback Player of the Year, but if he continues at his current pace, you could make an MVP argument for him. 

Meanwhile, McAdoo hasn't had the same luck in his first year back as a play-caller. The Panthers rank at or near the bottom of the league in most offensive statistical categories. 

Although McAdoo has his own problems to sort through ahead of Sunday's matchup with the Seahawks, he made it a point to let the folks know that he is a "Geno guy". 

"I do watch Geno every time I get a chance on the crossover tape. I'll take a look at him there, I'll take a look at him when he's on TV. I have a lot of respect for Geno. The way he carried himself in New York, the way he handles his business - he's a pro. It's outstanding to see him having the success that he's having. I'm a big fan of Geno. I don't know about on Sunday, but I'm a Geno guy.

"He's a worker. He's a show-up early guy, stay-late guy. He took some young players in the locker room under his wing, so there's definitely some leadership there. He's an aggressive player. He's a confident player, and that's earned. He has a good knowledge of defenses. He just has that confidence and that swagger. And when you go through tough times in this league as every quarterback goes through, sometimes that can fluctuate, it can go up and down. Not with him. He's a very confident player, has a tremendous skillset, sees the game well.

"Sometimes these guys can be put in some tough spots. And as long as inside of them they have some toughness and they can persevere and they can keep that confidence in themselves in tough times, they always have the talent to come out of it on the back end. You're seeing that with Geno and that's just a part of playing the game. These guys go through a lot when they come up through the ranks and they get a chance to play in this league so sometimes they just need to get in the right situation and certainly that's where Geno is right now."

The Panthers and Seahawks meet this evening in Seattle at 4:25 p.m. EST. 

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