Could the Las Vegas Raiders part ways with Geno Smith if his disastrous 2025 NFL season continues? While it’s a possibility that the franchise can do this in the offseason, it could be a costly decision.
Smith was brought in to bring stability to a young Raiders offense, but the mistakes usually seen from rookies or players in their second or third year have surprisingly come from someone like the veteran.
The Raiders signal-caller leads the league in interceptions with nine heading into Week 6. While head coach Pete Carroll is sticking by Smith, the question is whether Las Vegas’ front office feels the same.
ESPN’s Dan Graziano wrote about how much cutting Smith could cost the Raiders financially if that’s the route they want to take.
“What’s interesting to me is that the contract Smith signed with the Raiders after the trade doesn’t really tie them to him beyond this year,” Graziano wrote in an article published on October 8. “He has an $18.5 million salary guarantee for 2026, after making $40 million this year.
“If the Raiders cut him after this season, they’d have paid him $58.5 million for one (presumably disappointing) year. That’s a lot, but as Jeremy said, this team wants to win soon. If absorbing $18.5 million in dead money next year to move on helps them do that, I doubt it would stand in the Raiders’ way.”
Geno Smith Looks to Improve Amid Raiders’ Struggles
After the Raiders’ latest loss, where they managed just six points, Smith discussed how Las Vegas can still try to salvage its 2025 NFL season before things completely unravel—if they haven’t already.
“Work harder, study harder, study longer, band together, become a tighter group,” Smith said after the loss to the Colts on October 5. “And I think we’re already a tight group, but we got to get tighter as a group. And guys got to lock in. I mean, it’s a tough game. It’s a one-play-at-a-time game.
“They’re going to face a tough team every week. Man, that’s the NFL. There’s not going to be any easy game. We got to get in our mind that we’re going to go out and win the game and we’re going to get it done. Until we do that, we’ll have the same results.”
Pete Carroll Is Backing Raiders’ Geno Smith
If Las Vegas had a different coach, they might consider making a change at quarterback. Recently, Carroll explained why Kenny Pickett wasn’t brought in after the game against the Indianapolis Colts had already been decided.
“Here’s the reason why I didn’t do that: We need to stay out there and keep practicing,” Carroll said postgame when asked if there was a thought to bench Smith for Pickett. “We need to keep practicing, we need the reps, we need the turns, we need to run the system, we need to feel it, we need to see the guys get the opportunities to improve.
“I thought about it because there was a chance to do that. … That’s not what’s necessary. We need to get better and get right, so these are the games that we’re working on, and these are the games that we learn from and grow from so that we can change the course of the way games are going.”
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