Seahawks Final Report Card: Geno Smith Shines Orchestrating Shane Waldron's Offense

With full command of the scheme and great chemistry with his receivers, Geno Smith made the most of his second chance as a starter for the Seattle Seahawks emerging as a viable top-10 quarterback in 2022.

With the 2022 season officially in the books, the Seahawks will head into the offseason with plenty of momentum after a surprising 9-8 season that resulted in an unexpected return to the playoffs.

Serving as a poster child for an overachieving Seattle squad, Geno Smith rose from the abyss of quarterback purgatory as a seven-year backup to make his first Pro Bowl in his 10th NFL season. Looking back at his historically resurgent campaign, how did the veteran signal caller perform replacing Russell Wilson?

What Went Right

After a slow start in the first two weeks of the season, the Seahawks took the training wheels off and let Smith go into attack mode. Responding favorably, the veteran signal caller ran Shane Waldron's offense like a well-oiled machine, completing more than 70 percent of his passes while throwing 13 touchdowns compared to just three interceptions as the team won five of the next seven games to vault to the top of the NFC West. By the time the year concluded, he became the third player in franchise history to reach 30 touchdown passes in a season and set new franchise marks for passing yards (4,282) and completion percentage (69.8) in a single season.

Sequels are rarely better than the original, but somehow, Geno Smith's second touchdown throw to Lockett was better than the first. The Saints couldn't have played much better coverage and the throw was put in the only spot it could be to complete it for six. pic.twitter.com/btc38T9F62

— Corbin K. Smith (@CorbinSmithNFL) October 11, 2022

All season long, much as Wilson did during his 10 seasons under center, Smith torched opponents by letting it fly throwing the deep ball to star receivers DK Metcalf and Tyler Lockett among other weapons. Per Pro Football Focus, the former West Virginia standout led the NFL with 14 touchdowns and connected on a league-best 31 "big time throws" while posting a sterling 120.2 passer rating on passes traveling at least 20 yards. In addition, he only threw two interceptions on 63 such pass attempts and his overall numbers could have been even better if not for four drops by receivers, which tied for the most for any quarterback in 2022.

Far from captain check down status, Smith seemed to turn in at least two or three ridiculous completions each week, exhibiting a propensity for threading the needle and delivering strikes on challenging downfield throws. As a result, per NFL Next Gen Stats, he finished first among qualified quarterbacks with a Completion Percentage Over Expectation (CPOE) of 4.4.

Where Smith may have surprised the most, however, was with his ability to create as a runner. Known more as a pocket passer, he rushed for 366 yards on 35 attempts, averaging a healthy 5.4 yards per attempt and picking up a first down on 68.5 percent of those runs. Interestingly, most of those yards came on extended plays rather than designed runs, as he finished fifth among quarterbacks with 306 yards via scramble.

What Went Wrong

While his final stat line stacked up well against the best quarterbacks in the NFL finishing in the top five in touchdown passes, completion percentage, and passer rating, Smith's play leveled off starting with a Week 10 loss to the Buccaneers in Munich. Over the Seahawks final eight games, he threw seven interceptions, tied for the fifth-most in the NFL. More troubling, per PFF, he uncorked a league-worst 17 turnover-worthy throws, indicating his interception total could have been significantly higher down the stretch.

Yeah.... You can't have two crossers running same exact distance and expect a result other than a disaster. Geno probably expected Lockett to be open if he wasn't impeded. Tough one. pic.twitter.com/AAFpntqRwT

— Corbin K. Smith (@CorbinSmithNFL) November 29, 2022

Where did Smith's performance dip the most from the first half to the second half? As Seattle raced out to a 6-3 start, he ranked among the NFL's most efficient passers in the intermediate passing game (10 to 19 yards), sitting in the top 10 in completion percentage, touchdowns, and passer rating while throwing only one interception. But in the final eight games, his completion rate plummeted 12 percent and he threw 11 turnover-worthy passes on 70 attempts, leading to five interceptions. He did throw eight touchdowns on such passes, salvaging an 88.2 passer rating.

When pressured, Smith wasn't necessarily at his best in the second half either. After ranking in the top five in completion rate and passer rating while throwing only one interception while under duress in the first nine games, he was picked off four times and threw a league-worst eight turnover-worthy plays when pressured in the final nine contests. He was especially mistake prone against the blitz, as he threw just one touchdown and three picks when opponents sent five or more rushers after him.

Final Grade: A-

Though his numbers dipped off quite a bit in the final two months with an uptick in turnovers and poor decisions, not all of that drop off can be pinned on Smith. The Seahawks went through a long slump where they could not run the football at all, putting an immense amount of weight on the quarterback's shoulders conducting a one-dimensional offense. Making matters worse, the offensive line struggled to protect him and provide time for him to throw in the second half, earning four of its five worst pass protection grades from PFF after Week 11. This included a dreadful outing in Kansas City where he was running for his life every time he dropped back to throw.

Geno Smith has made more mistakes lately, but I wonder why? Chris Jones is an incredible talent, but when you've got quick pressure penetrating pocket from interior like this play after play, good luck getting much going passing the football. Tale of the first half for #Seahawks. pic.twitter.com/DPbD5rw0ZN

— Corbin K. Smith (@CorbinSmithNFL) December 27, 2022

All in all, Smith performed like a top-10 quarterback throughout the duration of the 2022 season and even when he struggled a bit with turnovers in the second half, he still threw at least two touchdowns in six of Seattle's final nine games and finished the season with 12 games with two or more touchdowns, tying with MVP favorite Patrick Mahomes for the most in the league. When afforded time to throw by his line and not hindered by drops, he was as effective as any passer in the game. Heading towards free agency, the Seahawks will have to make a decision whether or not they view him as the quarterback of the future and plan to award him with a contract likely pushing north of $30 million per year, but if they do pay that premium, he will certainly have earned it after a fantastic revival season that culminated in a Pro Bowl selection.

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