After quarterback turmoil over the last two seasons, the Las Vegas Raiders finally have their star passer. Geno Smith was acquired for a measly third-round pick this offseason, and that could prove to be the deal of the year. Smith started all 17 games for the Seahawks last season, leading them to a 10-7 record, but narrowly missing the postseason.
Smith has been a full-time starter in the NFL over the past three seasons and during that stretch, he’s completed more than 68 percent of his passes and has thrown a whopping 71 touchdowns to just 35 interceptions. His passer rating of 95.5 is 13th among all qualifying quarterbacks during that time and his yards per attempt (7.4) ranks ninth.
Where does Smith rank among the top quarterbacks in the NFL going into the 2025 season now that he is reunited with Pete Carroll? Higher than you may think. In a recent article by John Kosko of Pro Football Focus, he ranked all 32 starting quarterbacks in the NFL heading into the upcoming year. And he ranked Geno Smith at No. 10, ahead of several well-liked quarterbacks. Here is what he had to say about the 34-year-old quarterback from West Virginia:
"Few would have pegged Smith to grade as the sixth-best passer in the NFL over the past two seasons, but here we are. In fact, his 85.8 passing grade in that span is just 0.2 points shy of Patrick Mahomes. After being traded for a third-round pick this offseason, Smith should enjoy an improved offensive line but a downgrade in receiving weapons. He protects the football and has a knack for generating big-time throws."John Kosko, Pro Football Focus
There is no doubt that Smith is one of the better quarterbacks in the league and he has proven that over the last three seasons. Despite not playing much in his 20s, Smith has improved greatly over the last few years and has become a better-than-average quarterback.
But the most shocking part of this article is who Smith is ranked ahead of going into the 2025 season. Smith ranks higher than two of his former NFC West rivals in Brock Purdy (No. 11) and Kyler Murray (No. 15). But what is even more surprising is to see him ahead of young star quarterbacks like Jordan Love (No. 12) and C.J. Stroud (No. 14). Love and Stroud are two of the most popular young players in the league, but Pro Football Focus clearly prefers the consistency and reliability of Smith over them.
If the Raiders can get top-10 quarterback play out of Smith during the 2025 season, there is no reason why they can’t be a contender right away. The addition of Ashton Jeanty, combined with arguably the league’s best tight end in Brock Bowers will give Smith plenty of weapons. Jakobi Meyers is a very reliable receiver, and the hope is that Jack Bech, Dont’e Thornton and Tre Tucker can be complementary receivers, giving the entire offense more depth and explosive plays.
Everything sets up for Smith to have a big season in 2025 and for the Raiders to be much more competitive than anyone anticipates in Year 1 under Carroll. It will be fascinating to see if Smith can live up to his No. 10 ranking or if that ranking looks incredibly foolish early in the year.