Report: Seahawks prepared to give Geno the bag

Without a doubt, one of the best stories of the 2022 NFL season is how Geno Smith has emerged as a potential franchise quarterback, leading the Seattle Seahawks to a 9-8 record and a playoff berth. Regardless of the outcomes of the Hawks Wild Card showdown with the San Francisco 49ers Saturday afternoon, a report from NFL Insider Ian Rapoport Saturday indicates that Smith will be back with the team in 2023.

According to Rapoport, the team intends to reach agreement on a contract with Smith after the season, though can effectively guarantee his return to the team with the franchise tag. Obviously the tag is a tool that the team has not used regularly under Pete Carroll and John Schneider, however, per Rapoport, it is definitely on the table in this situation.

The exact amount of the tag will not be known until the official 2023 salary cap is set in the spring, however the non-exclusive franchise tag for quarterbacks is expected to be in the $31.5M to $32.5M range, depending upon exactly which projection is used. For those fans hoping that another team might sign Smith, yielding two first round picks for Seattle, that might be wishful thinking given the history of the non-exclusive tag.

In short, don’t be shocked when Geno signs a four-year, $150M contract on the eve of free agency next spring.