Raiders’ Geno Smith opens up about talks with Tom Brady, venting sessions with Pete Carroll before reunion

New Las Vegas Raiders quarterback Geno Smith saw the writing on the wall that his tenure as the Seattle Seahawks starting quarterback was coming to an end this offseason. After all, he was entering the final year of his contract in 2025, and he’s a 12-year NFL veteran who had been on four different teams — the New York Jets (2013-2016), the New York Giants (2017), the Los Angeles Chargers (2018) and the Seahawks (2019-2024). 

“Obviously, they have young guys in the building that they want to step up and be leaders, and they got a new head coach last year,” Smith told Sports Illustrated on Friday. “And Mike [Macdonald] was good for us, and I really enjoyed being with him for that season. But again, man, when you’re talking about business, and you’re talking about a quarterback who wants not only to get paid — every player wants to get paid — but to be respected, that’s the most important thing. It’s the respect factor. And I just felt like there was a disconnect there.”  

His chat with Macdonald earlier this offseason was informative enough to know his next contract likely wouldn’t come as a Seahawk. 

“Just based on that conversation, I kind of knew the direction the team was going,” Smith said.

Following Seattle trading him to Las Vegas for a 2025 third-round pick in March, Smith got the multi-year security he craved Thursday with a two-year, $75 million extension that is worth up to $85.5 million and comes with $66.5 million guaranteed through through the 2027 season. A big plus of that deal for Smith is that a reported $18.5 million of those guarantees are for the 2026 season, indicating a legitimate two-year commitment to him from the Raiders. It also helps that Smith is reunited with his former Seahawks head coach, Pete Carroll, who became the Raiders head coach this offseason, after regularly calling him to vent about Seattle’s rebuild and his frustrations with it this past season. 

“I would call him whenever I got frustrated,” Smith told SI. “He talked me through things, and he still coached me. And I think that’s what makes him such a special man, is that he was coaching me even when he wasn’t my head coach. A lot of the things that he was telling me, a lot of conversations we had really kept me steady throughout the season, and kept my head on straight. Because, again, man, this is a team that I gave everything I had to …

“It was very frustrating last year, because as a team, we set goals for ourselves, and we didn’t achieve those goals,” Smith continued. “And being a part of the team, being a quarterback, I take that right on my shoulders. And I feel like that’s my responsibility to make sure that stuff happens. And we weren’t able to reach our goals, weren’t able to get to the playoffs. That’s the ultimate goal, to give yourself a chance to go out there and win a championship. And that’s what frustrated me the most. And then, obviously, not having real security there, not feeling like you’re really a part of the future plans. There’s a lot to think about.”

Call it destiny, fate, whatever, but Smith believes his reunion with Carroll was meant to be.

“I think if you believe in fate, you believe in things like that, then it’s like the stars are all aligning, right?” Smith said. “It’s all the things that you would want. I could see Pete, but all the guys that he would want to be a part of it? We’re here, we’re doing this thing together. And I was sick, man, when [Carroll] left Seattle. I was sick. And I didn’t see this coming. I think it’s going to be great for both of us.”    

At his Raiders press conference on Monday, Smith made his dedication to Carroll and the Raiders crystal clear.

“I’ll run through a wall for him…and I’ll do the same for my teammates,” Smith said, via Paul Gutierrez, on Monday.   

Geno Smith, Raiders agree to massive two-year extension with $66.5M guaranteed

Bryan DeArdo

Smith is also thrilled to have Chip Kelly as his offensive coordinator after seeing him help power his cousin, Ohio State star wideout Jeremiah Smith, and the rest of the Buckeyes offense to a College Football Playoff national championship in the same capacity this past season. 

“They had two 1,000-yard runners, they had two 1,000-yard receivers. I mean, they were very, very balanced,” Smith said. “They lost two of the best O-linemen in the country and went out and won the natty. Watching that team and how he developed [quarterback] Will Howard, and how he got better throughout the season, you see it. … So seeing that firsthand, and all the schematic things that they’re trying to do to gain advantages, and now he’s bringing new wrinkles, up into the NFL game? He’s done this before and he’s doing it again, and I just think it’s gonna be a great thing.”

Getting to build a relationship with Raiders part owner and seven-time Super Bowl champion quarterback Tom Brady is also a plus. Smith told SI that Brady FaceTimed Smith as the trade was being finalized. Brady, who didn’t feel appreciated by head coach Bill Belichick toward the end of his New England Patriots tenure, made sure his new Pro Bowl quarterback felt the love upon his arrival in Las Vegas. 

“I’ve always really been hard on myself about being able to play the game without using all the physical attributes,” Smith said. “And from watching my tape, that’s something that he noticed, how I handle protections and can get in and out of plays. We ran a very intricate system [last year]. It was our first year in the system, but we didn’t hold back on anything. And I think that’s something that [Brady] recognized, he noticed. … Stuff from the neck up, decision making, leadership, just all those things are the things that Tom talked to me about reasons why they wanted me.”

Once the trade went through, Smith told SI that Brady had Smith over to hang out at his house in Miami to continue their chat about quarterbacking at a high level into his forties. It’s rare that Smith has felt fully appreciated and contractually secure throughout the winding road of his NFL career, but now that he has those things, Brady made it clear to Smith that security isn’t the finish line.

It’s time to level up, something Smith has done in each of his last few seasons in Seattle. Smith led the NFL in completion percentage (69.8%) in 2022 while also throwing a career-high 30 touchdown passes en route to winning NFL Comeback Player of the Year honors. In 2024, Smith set career-highs in completion percentage (70.4%), completions (407) and yards passing (4,320). All of those now stand as Seahawks single-season records, but the biggest career-best from 2024 Smith is looking to improve upon is his 10 victories in 17 games last season. 

“What I was talking to Tom about, this is something he said, and this is true: ‘We don’t want to celebrate contracts. We want to celebrate wins,'” Smith said. “And the thing is, that just kind of set the tone for the team. This is our quarterback. This is the direction we’re headed. And there’s no gray area there. Everything’s set in stone. And when you have that, when you can set a real plan, then you can get things going. As far as the contract, I’m very grateful, very thankful, very appreciative. But my main focus is go out there and win games, set the tone and be a better version than anyone’s ever seen of me.”