Now that the Las Vegas Raiders have moved on from head coach Pete Carroll, quarterback Geno Smith’s future with the franchise has come into question. Carroll was the reason the team traded for the quarterback, but now he’s lost his biggest ally in the building.
The Raiders were already expected to cut him this offseason, but he’s not on a huge contract, and his experience as a backup could make him valuable as an insurance policy in case a rookie isn’t ready to play. However, it’s starting to look like Smith already knows that he’s gone.
On Instagram, the quarterback posted a couple of pictures of himself with Carroll after the news of his firing broke.
Many also noted that Smith decided to scrub his Instagram of all pictures of him in Raiders gear. All that remains is a picture of him with Ohio State wide receiver Jeremiah Smith, who is his cousin.
Naturally, this has stirred a lot of speculation that Smith is either angling to get released by the Raiders or he already knows that his fate is sealed. It’s standard practice for an athlete to start scrubbing his social media accounts of references to his team when he wants to leave. The Raiders get hit with an $18.5 million dead cap hit if they release him.
Smith Was a Disaster for Raiders
Smith clearly didn’t enjoy his time in Las Vegas, but he can’t just blame the team for his struggles. He led the NFL with 17 interceptions this season and was also tied for the lead with 55 sacks.
The Raiders’ offensive line deserves a lot of blame for all the sacks, but Smith also had a tendency to hold onto the ball for too long at times. There’s also the fact that Smith let his emotions get the better of him when he decided to flip his middle finger to the home crowd after a loss.
Once he did that, it was going to be very difficult for the fan base to get on his side. The Raiders can try to trade Smith this offseason, but it’s hard to see how they’ll get any value in return.
John Spytek Addresses Geno Smith’s Future
Every projection has the Raiders taking a quarterback with the No. 1 pick in the 2026 NFL Draft. That quarterback will almost certainly start Week 1 of next season.
For now, general manager John Spytek isn’t going to show his cards. He’s not ready to close the door on Smith quite yet.
“Geno’s under contract for next year. … I’m not going to get too far into the future right now,” Spytek told reporters on Monday. “But he’s one of the guys that’s under contract. He’s the quarterback. He played some good football this year, and we’ll make those decisions going forward.”
It’s hard to see a scenario where the Raiders keep Smith, but stranger things have happened. If he stays on his current contract, he’s likely going to make a lot more money than he would if he signed elsewhere in free agency.
Geno Smith Makes Head-Turning Move After Raiders’ Pete Carroll Firing