Despite the 2025 NFL Draft being less than 50 days away, some teams just can’t seem to wait to get their hands on a quarterback. After months of speculation surrounding the team being a candidate to trade up in the draft, the Las Vegas Raiders broke the news cycle by trading for the Seattle Seahawks veteran, Geno Smith.
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With their hunger for a QB now seemingly satisfied, the Raiders now have the freedom to address other needs on the roster. Asserting that “Pete Carroll is trying to set the culture here,” the NFL’s prominent insider, Ian Rapoport, suggests that the journeyman passer is a great purchase for the Raiders in this particular spot.
“Geno Smith has been in it. He’s a leader… He can go a long way in helping Maxx Crosby… set this culture in Las Vegas and really be some of these translators for Pete Carroll.”
Seemingly wanting to avoid the risk of wasting time by trying to develop a young quarterback, Vegas’ move seems to indicate that they are wanting to compete sooner rather than later. In an attempt to save the sinking ship, their pairing of veteran leadership with a young supporting cast could prove to be enough to turn the tides of their ongoing rebuild.
The HC-QB duo put together a pair of consecutive winning seasons throughout their final two years together in Seattle. With just one winning season to their name since 2017, the signing makes more than enough sense for the Raiders.
Analysts credit Tom Brady for Geno Smith trade
National Chief Reporter for the NFL Network, Steve Wyche, made it clear that Las Vegas was determined to get a quarterback one way or another. Citing his conversation with Raiders owner, Mark Davis, in which he was told that the team “…has got to go get a quarterback,” Wyche credited Tom Brady for the trade as well.
“The guy that was helping them find a quarterback, Tom Brady, that was a big thing for him too. Mark Davis said they were going to lean on Tom… Now they’ve got a veteran quarterback in here with their experience that can help them level up and change the culture, much like the Chargers did last year.”
Highlighting that the move will also allow Chip Kelly to begin designing plays, Wyche suggests that the bargain bin deal may in fact turn out to be a steal for Las Vegas. While the Chargers managed to revamp their culture without needing a quarterback change, the Raiders’ willingness to do what it takes to create a winning mindset should pay dividends for the franchise in the future.
Carroll and Smith will now attempt to replicate their success from the 2022 season that saw Smith throw for a career best 30 touchdowns en route to a Wild Card berth.
