Former MVP Rich Gannon on Geno Smith’s resurgence: QB ‘much more polished,’ and has ‘a lot of teams’ looking

Few quarterbacks have taken the NFL by surprise more than Geno Smith in 2022. The former Jets castoff and longtime backup was an afterthought entering the year as Russell Wilson’s successor. All Smith has done, however, is post some of the most efficient and explosive numbers among all QBs, leading a borderline top-five offense in points per game and keeping the Seahawks in the NFC playoff mix.

Smith’s got a big test on tap in Week 15: a prime-time Thursday night matchup with the division-leading 49ers, who boast one of the stingiest defenses in the league. But already, he’s begun rewriting the narrative of his career.

To explore Smith’s late emergence, we turned to Rich Gannon, analyst on CBS Sports Network’s “NFL Monday QB.” A two-time All-Pro, four-time Pro Bowler and 18-year NFL veteran, Gannon knows a thing or two about late-career stardom, winning NFL MVP and guiding the Raiders to the Super Bowl in his age-37 season. Here, he provides insight on what’s changed, and what lies ahead, for Seattle’s underdog starter:

CBS Sports: Geno Smith has looked like an entirely different QB this year. How did we get here?

Rich Gannon: You’d be doing a tremendous disservice to say all of a sudden the light switch went on this year. Now, I’ve been surprised because I [broadcast] a lot of his games early in his career and, [in retrospect], I don’t think he was ready to play when he came out of school. I think he had some bad experiences, and he lost confidence in himself, the team lost confidence in him, the coaches lost confidence in him. But then he went to the Giants and Chargers, and that was probably a good thing for him.

How did that time as a backup specifically help him grow?

Gannon: I don’t know if he had a mentor with the Jets that taught him how to prepare for a game. Sometimes young players, they learn bad habits. They think that coming in on Tuesday for two hours and watching tape is enough, and it’s not. I think spending time with Eli Manning, being around Philip Rivers, being around Russell Wilson and observing, I think that’s better prepared him for this new lease on life. And I think another kick in the pants was when Seattle made the deal for Drew Lock, and a lot of people probably felt like it’s Drew Lock’s job. He got the opportunity and said, ‘I’m not gonna give this back.’

Does Smith have a mental edge compared to some QBs, having endured what he did?

Gannon: I really think so. Some quarterbacks come in and never have to deal with what he did. You think of Patrick Mahomes, Josh Allen, those guys came into good situations. You look back, and with Geno, every time you turn on “SportsCenter” at night, they’re ripping you. Not a lot of people come back from that. I think going through those experiences has really toughened him. … You’ve got a player who realizes the significance of his opportunity. It took me until I was 33 years old to get the keys to the car. Nobody in my first 11 years came to me and said, ‘You’re the guy.’ Everybody’s journey is different.

On the field, where have you seen the most improvement from Smith in Seattle?

Gannon: He’s got better anticipation, better decision-making, better footwork, better command. I don’t know if there was ever anything in his game physically that he didn’t do well. A lot of his issues before were ball security and decision-making. Now you’ve got a quarterback that’s making great decisions, and especially on third down, in the red zone. … He was all reactionary early in his career; the game was going way too fast. He’s much more polished now. His ability to process pre-snap and post-snap, part of the credit needs to go to him, and part has to go to the coaching staff.

As an evaluator projecting his future, how do you give appropriate weight to his 2022 breakout as opposed to the nine years he struggled or sat on the bench?

Gannon: I don’t really see a scenario where he’s gonna go backward. There’s more examples of players that went through adversity and grew and matured. They learn to take coaching better and they develop a plan. My first six or seven years in the NFL, I thought I was doing a really good job. No one ever questioned my work ethic. And yet I wasn’t doing half the shit I should’ve been doing. Each quarterback has to develop their own routine. I think he’s finally developed some habits that are really healthy.

What does this mean for Smith going into the offseason, when he’s set to be a free agent?

Gannon: There’s a lot of teams out there that are looking, I can tell you that. New Orleans. Carolina. Tampa Bay, if Tom Brady retires. They’re trying to figure it out.

And what do you make of Smith’s emergence in light of Russell Wilson’s struggles in Denver? Is it possible Smith could’ve beaten out Wilson for the Seahawks job going into the year?

Gannon: What I can tell you is, there’s a lot going on there [in Denver]; it ain’t one thing. There’s a lot more going on there than meets the eye. Why would a team like the Seahawks just move on from a player with that talent and, quite frankly, durability? I worked with [Seahawks general manager] John Schneider in Kansas City, and I know how good he is at what he does. When two people like that — he and Pete Carroll — decide to move on from a really good player, you gotta ask yourself why. They don’t just make decisions that aren’t in the best interest of the football team.

You’ve got a top-five coach and top-five GM. I think they know what they’re doing. And I do know this: If you don’t have ‘that guy’ in your building at quarterback, this is a bad business to be in, for everybody. If you’re Andy Reid and you’re coaching Patrick Mahomes, or Sean McDermott with Josh Allen, you don’t mind coming in and spending 70 hours a week working. If you don’t have a guy, it’s bad. You’re better off selling life insurance.

What’s your hope and expectation for Smith’s next steps in Seattle?

Gannon: Well I’m one of those 50 voters for the Associated Press, and honestly, if you talk about a candidate for Comeback Player of the Year, I think his story has gotten my attention. But I will also tell you this: This is a week-to-week business. We all talk about these players or teams when they’re doing well, but things can change quickly. So we’ll see how it plays out.