Starting quarterback Geno Smith of the Seattle Seahawks has been at the top of his game this season. Through six games, he leads the NFL in completion percentage and has posted 8.0 yards per pass with 9 touchdowns and just 2 interceptions.
He’s not just passing well either, Smith is managing the game. There have reportedly been two instances in two different games this season where Smith called an audible during the fourth quarter. Both of those audibles were switches from a pass to a running play and each of them resulted in touchdowns.
Smith is on his game in front of the media too. When asked about Seahawks wide receiver Tyler Lockett, Smith had a funny quip about his teammate’s ability to get open.
“For a real-estate agent, guys are probably underestimating him,” said Smith during his press conference on October 20.
Smith is referring to the real estate agent license Lockett earned this past offseason. Lockett now doubles as a 1,000-yard receiver and a real estate agent.
Lockett’s Double Life as Football Player, Real Estate Agent
For being a former All-Pro receiver, Lockett doesn’t get much attention around the league.
Granted, Lockett made first-team All Pro as a returner during his rookie season in 2015, but still, he’s developed into one of the best all-around weapons in the NFL. Yet, he’s never made the Pro Bowl.
Lockett posted at least 900 receiving yards and 8 touchdowns in each of the last four years with Russell Wilson in Seattle. During that stretch from 2018-21, Lockett twice scored 10 touchdowns in a season. He also posted a career-high 100 receptions in 2020.
But even without Wilson for a chunk of 2021, Lockett continued to shine. He averaged 16.1 yards per catch last year and reached a new career-best 1,175 receiving yards with 8 scores.
This season, Lockett doesn’t appear to be slowing down despite turning 30 and spending a major chunk of his offseason studying for a real estate exam. Lockett shared with Komo News that he studied 90 hours to pass his exam.
He did indeed pass the test and began his real estate career in February.
Lockett is still excelling on the football field too. He has two 100-yard games this season and scored two touchdowns in the 19-9 victory against the Arizona Cardinals in Week 6.
“He’s one of the better receivers at getting separation I’ve been around,” Smith said of Lockett. “He’s fast. He’s probably faster than people think. He’s savvy, he knows the coverages, he knows how to get open, when to get open.
“And he’s got great hands … He catches the ball better than anybody I’ve ever seen. And he’s just a great human being. All around, just a great guy. Tyler is definitely one of my favorite teammates, and he just does a great job every single week.”
Seahawks Flying Under the Radar?
Lockett could be seen as a microcosm for the entire Seahawks organization this year.
Not much was expected from Seattle going into the 2022 season, but the Seahawks are off to a 3-3 start in large part because Smith has exceeded expectations through five weeks. Then against the Cardinals in Week 6, the defense had its best game, holding Arizona to 315 total yards and nine points.
The Seahawks have two difficult games coming up versus the Los Angeles Chargers and New York Giants. But after that, Seattle’s next six games are against teams with a .500 record or lower going into Week 7.
As Lockett seems to do regularly in the NFL, the Seahawks could be one of the biggest surprises in the league by the middle of December.
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Seahawks’ Geno Smith Sends Funny Message to Tyler Lockett Doubters