Getty Seahawks QB Geno Smith and head coach Pete Carroll
The Seattle Seahawks didn’t make it easy in Week 10 against the Washington Commanders. At home they were almost touchdown favorites and kept the visiting team waiting so long that the score was tied with 52 seconds left in the game. However, quarterback Geno Smith led a 7-play, 50-yard drive to set up a game-winning field goal from Jason Meyers, and after the game, head coach Pete Carroll couldn’t say enough good things about his struggling QB.
Pete Carroll calls Geno Smith “perfect”
After Smith led the Seahawks to a game-winning win over the Commanders in Week 10, Carroll took the postgame press conference podium and couldn’t have said anything nicer about his quarterback.
“I thought he was almost perfect. Anything but – maybe he was perfect,” Carroll enthused about his starting quarterback. “The throws he had to think up, the attitude, the rhythm, the management of the club, the whole thing.” He was perfect. I thought he was exactly what we could hopefully see in him. I’m sure he had great numbers today. The numbers must have been great, but beyond that he did exactly what we expected.”
Without looking at the stats before getting to the microphones, Carroll summed up how good Smith’s stats were on Sunday.
The Seattle QB’s final box score was 31 of 47, for a career-high 369 yards with two touchdowns and no interceptions. It was a big difference from just a week ago, when Smith had one of the worst games of his Seahawks career, going 13 of 28 for 157 yards with no touchdowns and one interception in a 37-3 loss to the Baltimore Ravens.
It’s no surprise that Smith had a great game against the Commanders. Washington had one of the worst pass defenses in the league entering this game. They had given up the fourth-most passing yards in the NFL this season (2,274) and were 21st in pass rush and 16th in coverage according to their PFF grade.
And the best news for Smith and the Seahawks offense after their win at the Commanders in Week 10 is that the team they face in Week 11 may be worse.
Smith and the Seahawks’ passing game could blossom again in Week 11
As bad as the Commanders’ pass defense is, the Los Angeles Rams could be worse.
Geno Smith, Pete Carroll and the Seahawks travel to LA to face their NFC West rival Rams in Week 11, and if the teams hope to continue grinding out wins, they’ll likely have to rely on Smith and the passing game once again.
In nine weeks of football, the Rams allowed the 13th-most passing yards (1,955) and ranked 14th in pass rush and 32nd in coverage with a PFF grade of 40.0.
These numbers have Smith, Tyler Lockett, DK Metcalf and Jaxon Smith-Njigba licking their lips.
And having these players advance in Week 11 is crucial to the Seahawks’ season, as this matchup is a must-win ahead of the season’s most crucial matchup in Weeks 12-15. In these four games, the Seahawks face San Francisco twice, the 49ers, the Dallas Cowboys and the Philadelphia Eagles.
It will take a “near-perfect” performance from Smith to get through these games with a winning record, but if he can do that, this team will truly be a major contender.
Tim Crean covers the NFL for Heavy.com, with a focus on the Seattle Seahawks. He began writing about sports in 2016 and has covered the NFL, NBA, soccer, sports media and more, with bylines at ClutchPoints, Sportscasting and The NIL Deal. More about Tim Crean
Take the quiz now
Like heavy but hate the ads?
Subscribe now for an ad-free experience
Read more Seahawks news
More stories are loading