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Tyler Lockett Stayed By Geno Smith's Side After Injury in Classy Gesture

Tyler Lockett was a great teammate for Geno Smith.

Kyle Koster

Geno Smith heads into the locker room accompanied by Tyler Lockett
Geno Smith heads into the locker room accompanied by Tyler Lockett / SNF on X
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The Seattle Seahawks would like to quickly learn from and then forget forever their Sunday night performance against the Green Bay Packers. Presented with a chance to remain in the driver's seat in the NFC West as the season enters the final straightaway, the Seahawks sleepwalked through the first three quarters and found themselves down 23-6 and frantic to mount a comeback. Those efforts were severely hampered when starting quarterback Geno Smith exited with a knee injury.

It's the last thing any aspiring playoff team needs right now, but there does seem to be some optimism that the injury wasn't quite as bad as it looked.

"I'll tell you this, this guy's probably the toughest player I've been around," Seahawks coach Mike Macdonald said of Smith postgame. Seattle ended up losing the game, 30-13. "(It was) severe enough for him not to come back in the game. We'll do all the tests tomorrow and kind of figure it out as we go. Right now, structurally it looks like it's OK. We'll get him imaged and all that stuff."

In providing the real-time story of Smith's injuries, NBC's Sunday Night Football broadcast revealed that the veteran signal-caller did not meet his fate alone as Seahawks wide receiver Tyler Lockett left his spot on the sidelines to accompany his quarterback to the locker room.

The classy move from Lockett shows just how much respect Smith commands on his team and how imperative his health is for the franchise as it chases its goals. It was an organic show of support that can only happen when there's a strong bond. Seahawks fans can look at that and find hope that the team will continue to fight, even if they are forced to do so without their quarterback.

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Kyle Koster
KYLE KOSTER

Kyle Koster is an assistant managing editor at Sports Illustrated covering the intersection of sports and media. He was formerly the editor in chief of The Big Lead, where he worked from 2011 to '24. Koster also did turns at the Chicago Sun-Times, where he created the Sports Pros(e) blog, and at Woven Digital.

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