The Las Vegas Raiders fell in heartbreaking fashion to the Chicago Bears as a blocked field goal sealed the 25-24 win for the visitors on September 28 at Allegiant Stadium.
It was a disaster game for Geno Smith, who went 14-for-21 on his pass attempts for 117 passing yards, two touchdowns, and three interceptions. The turnovers from the veteran quarterback are now a consistent them from him over the last three weeks.
As a result, the Raiders’ radio color analyst Kirk Morrison stated that he’s concerned with the way that Smith is playing right now, a month into the 2025 NFL season.
“I’m a little worried because it was a similar coverage in which he was getting intercepted on,” Morrison said on “Raiders Postgame Live.“ “The strong safety in the middle of the field is Kevin Byard. That’s an all-pro safety who’s been in this league forever.
“All he did was watch the eyes of Geno Smith. I talked about it earlier, the Raiders have to convert on first and second down. When I say first and second down conversions, I love when they’re in a third and short, the third and mediums, because it allows Geno Smith to get rid of the ball quickly.
“When Geno gets in the 3rd and 8, 3rd and 9-plus, he holds on to the football to allow those plays to develop. He stares it down. And in those two interceptions by Byard, all he did was watch Geno Smith, stare him down, and he picked them off.”
Do the Raiders Need to Bench Geno Smith?
Despite throwing three interceptions and turning the ball over in recent weeks, Morrison doesn’t believe that the Silver and Black should bench Smith and turn to backup Kenny Pickett.
“Geno wants to do the right thing, and I get it, but sometimes the best play is getting to the next down, and that’s what he has to work on,” Morrison added. “There’s no quarterback situation. Do you sit him? Do you bench him? No. I think you have to work through this. And this is only four games in.
“I hate the hole that the Raiders are in at one and three, but there’s still some room for improvement. And I’ll tell you, Geno Smith is going to be the first guy to say, I have to be better because of what you mentioned. The running game was excellent. I thought a lot of guys did their part, and Geno Smith didn’t do his part.”
The Raiders Are In a Serious Hole
After starting the season with a Week 1 win, Las Vegas have lost three games in a row and now will have to head on the road at 1-3 to face an Indianapolis Colts team coming off a loss in Week 4. As a result, they’ll be motivated to get a bounce-back win.
Smith will also look to bounce back, but it will be interesting to see if head coach Pete Carroll won’t be quick to change at quarterback if the veteran continues to turn the ball over.
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