Before anyone could doubt him again, or project him a one-hit wonder, Geno Smith knew where he was headed. His Seahawks had just been routed out of the playoffs 41–17 by the 49ers, and that shiner of a loss would give Smith direction off that soggy Santa Clara grass.
He was going back to Seattle, and not just to clean out his locker.
While his teammates, like the members of any other eliminated team would, scattered across the country to start their offseasons, Smith saddled up in the Pacific Northwest with Seahawks assistant strength coach Danny van Dijk. The quarterback jokes now that van Dijk was probably pretty pissed with him, because chances are the coach wanted to go home, too. But there was real purpose to what Smith hoped to accomplish over the last two weeks of January.
“Obviously, there was a contract situation coming up, but I just wanted to stay connected to the guys and see it through,” Smith said, during a quiet, postpractice moment Thursday. “I wanted to keep playing until we got to the Super Bowl. I just told myself, . I didn’t see why this [should be] different. I just took that approach—just continue to train as if I did have a game and just see things into the future for myself.
“Like, if next year, this happens, then I’ll still be working at this time. So why not do it now?”
Ambitious? Maybe.
But it’s also another affirmation of a truth that’s been evident to every person who’s been around Smith the past couple of years. He saw what happened last year coming, even when it seemed like no one else could imagine him getting another shot to start, and even 12 months ago, when most saw him as the safety net in case Drew Lock didn’t turn a corner over the summer. So for those who know Smith, it makes sense that he’d dive right in on work to make the next step in his career renaissance come to life.
In January, that meant strengthening his core and improving his cardiovascular fitness. In February, it meant going to Florida to work with his throwing coach on the finite details of his game. In March, it meant traveling the country to get one-on-one time working with a variety of his receivers. Since then, it’s meant building toward training camp, and the season, with his teammates back in the Pacific Northwest.
You can go ahead and look at the breadth of Smith’s career, or the structure of his new contract, and doubt the Seahawks starter if you want. He’ll point back to what you were saying about him last year and let you in on another truth of his—because of all he’s doing now, he thinks the best, for both him and Seattle, is yet to come.
