Much at Stake For Geno Smith in Seahawks' Finale vs. Rams

While the Seahawks cannot make the playoffs after being eliminated on Sunday, Geno Smith will look to finish the season strong as he pushes for financial incentives.

Nov 19, 2023; Inglewood, California, USA; Seattle Seahawks quarterback Geno Smith (7) looks to pass against the Los Angeles Rams in the second quarter at SoFi Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Kirby Lee-Imagn Images / Kirby Lee-Imagn Images

Closing in on the conclusion of his third season as starting quarterback for the Seattle Seahawks, Geno Smith won't have a chance to lead his team back to the playoffs in Sunday's rematch against the Los Angeles Rams, but he still has much to play for in the season finale.

In the middle of a three-year contract extension signed in March 2023, Smith's deal included a boatload of incentives to earn additional money coming off a breakout 2022 campaign that culminated in Comeback Player of the Year honors and a Pro Bowl selection. Those $2 million incentives are tied to his production from that season, both from a team and individual standpoint, including throwing 30 or more touchdown passes and leading the Seahawks to 10 or more wins.

Heading into Sunday's finale, Smith hasn't hit any of his five escalators for the 2024 season and with only 17 touchdown passes in 16 starts up to this point, he won't be matching his career year from two seasons ago in that department and an additional $5 million for reaching every incentive isn't in the picture. But three of them remain very much in reach when Seattle travels to SoFi Stadium, creating an interesting story line for an otherwise meaningless finale.

Coming into the game with a 9-7 record, Smith can check off the 10 wins milestone by beating the Rams on the road, while he's within striking distance of his required passing yardage mark (4,282) and currently has a completion percentage north of 69.755 percent. He only needs to throw for 185 yards on Sunday to hit that escalator and as long as he doesn't lay an egg accuracy wise and stays around a 65 percent completion rate, he will earn that incentive as well.

Being eliminated from playoff contention, it's possible the Seahawks could consider playing backup Sam Howell at some point on Sunday, especially since Smith has been playing through a knee injury suffered in a Week 15 loss to the Packers. With one year remaining on his rookie deal, the team may want to see him for an extended period of time to see whether he still fits into their future plans.

But with Smith standing to earn up to $6 million in additional bonus money against the Rams and being a staunch competitor regardless of the situation, even if the game ultimately doesn't matter in the standings, it's hard to imagine he would be accepting of the Seahawks preventing him from achieving those incentives by starting Howell instead. If they take a big lead against backups and he hits his yardage escalator, then that would be a different scenario where he may be fine with resting for the remainder of the contest.

Coach Mike Macdonald will speak with reporters on Monday afternoon and how he plans to handle playing starters in a game that can't push Seattle into the playoffs will certainly be brought up at some point. With Smith still having a year left on his contract and being less than 100 percent healthy, his status for Sunday bears watching, though the financial incentives in play make it seem highly unlikely he's not going to be under center aiming for a strong finish for himself and the team.

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