How Geno Smith and Seahawks saved their season: ‘He gets that look in his eye’

SANTA CLARA, Calif. – Geno Smith had that look in his eyes.

Laken Tomlinson has only been a Seattle Seahawk for seven months, but that’s more than enough time to learn how this current team feels about the San Francisco 49ers, his former club.

It was also enough time to find out how much a game like this meant to Smith, who lined up calmly and composedly ahead of Seattle’s game-winning drive on Sunday, smiling as if he knew what was coming. . Smith’s confidence and command of the moment added to the sense of belief that flowed through everyone in the Seahawks’ clash Sunday afternoon at Levi’s Stadium.

“I was like, ‘This is it. We’re going to win this game,'” said Tomlinson, Seattle’s veteran left guard. “He gets that look in his eyes and he just has to do something special. When he gets that look, man, all we can do is back him up.”

The situation called for greatness, and Smith and the offense delivered. Down by four points on the road against a division rival that had beaten them six straight, the Seahawks needed 80 yards in the final 2:38 to avoid a sixth loss in seven games, which would have essentially put a fork in the door in their season.

Smith has had special late moments in his three seasons as Seattle’s starter, but on Sunday he checked a new box by leading a game-winning scoring drive against San Francisco, capped by his 13-yard scramble with 12 seconds left to give the Seahawks a 20-17 victory.

AWESOME!!!! TD @SEAHAWKS!!

: #SEAVsSF on FOX
: pic.twitter.com/ATSZeKJaOe

— NFL (@NFL) 18 November 2024

On the final drive, Smith completed 7 of 8 passes for 54 yards and accounted for 29 yards on two runs, the latter so devastating that once he stretched the ball over the goal line, he gleefully sent it into the air toward a stunned 49ers crowd fans.

“That was probably my best throw of the day,” Smith said with a smile in his postgame press conference.

It’s impossible to overstate the significance of this win for Seattle, which improved to 5-5 and third in the NFC West with two games against the division-leading Cardinals (6-4) over the next three weeks. The Seahawks entered this game with 3 percent odds to win the division, according to Athletics projection model. A loss would have kept them in the division cellar while they were at a mathematical and psychological disadvantage against a 49ers team that had won the previous six meetings by an average of two touchdowns.

“Just getting the vibe from the whole team, I knew how much it meant to this team,” said Tomlinson, who signed a one-year deal with Seattle in April and spent five seasons with the 49ers from 2017 to 2021. “I love these guys. I came in and worked after with these guys and feel the. I am here with them, so I feel it too.”

Smith’s 13-yard scramble was an injection of adrenaline, in part because of the earlier defeats. He was 0-5 against San Francisco before Sunday. On Thursday, he said this fight was personal. Two weeks ago, he apologized for costing his team the game against the Rams in Week 9. During Seattle’s Week 10 bye, Smith spoke with coach Mike Macdonald and vowed to atone for those mistakes.

“I told him I would do everything in my power to make it right,” Smith said. “Today was just a step in that direction. But we have a long way to go.”

Smith also made mistakes in this game. He began the third quarter with a bad decision on third down that led to an interception. Instead of giving up a touchdown that could have opened the floodgates, however, Seattle’s defense allowed just 12 yards on seven plays on the ensuing possession, and San Francisco settled for a field goal to take a 10-6 lead.

That kind of defensive effort was also why reconciliation was on Smith’s mind Sunday. Smith felt he let the defense down in Week 9 and didn’t want another strong showing from his teammates to go to waste.

“When they come out and play like they did today, we deserve to win and they deserve to win,” Smith said. “It’s my job as a quarterback to make sure that happens.”

Seattle’s defense enabled Smith to live up to his promise by forcing a punt on San Francisco’s penultimate drive of the game. After the Seahawks’ offense turned the ball over on downs, the 49ers took over at the 37-yard line with 3:56 left. During a decisive three-play stretch, safety Coby Bryant tackled running back Christian McCaffrey for a loss of 1, cornerback Riq Woolen covered receiver Deebo Samuel and forced an incompletion on second down, then Bryant stopped receiver Jauan Jennings short of the sticks on third-and -11.

“As long as I gave the offense a shot, I knew they were going to take care of business,” Bryant said.

In this case, taking care of business meant leaving Smith heavy. He completed his first four passes on the final drive, including an 8-yard hookup with receiver Jaxon Smith-Njigba on third-and-5 to the Seattle 44-yard line at the two-minute warning. A few plays later, he bought time in the pocket on third-and-3 near midfield and zipped the ball off linebacker Fred Warner into the hands of Smith-Njigba for 15 more yards.

After a first-down sack, Smith again bought time and scrambled 16 yards to the 21-yard line with 39 seconds left.

“I mean, the guy can run,” receiver Jake Bobo said. “Most people probably don’t know this, but he can run – and he can run fast.”

After an 8-yard completion to Smith-Njigba, setting up second-and-2 at the 13-yard line with the clock ticking under 20 seconds, Smith set everyone up once again. He dropped back, recognized a crease between Tomlinson and left tackle Charles Cross, held the ball out as if he might attempt a pass, crossed the line of scrimmage and outraced safety Malik Mustapha and cornerback Isaac Yiadom to the end zone.

“He was legendary, like I tell everybody,” said sophomore center Olu Oluwatimi, making his first start of the year following the sudden retirement of Connor Williams, which became official Saturday. “The way his career started, people still label him that way, and I always tell people Geno is great. He’s a great player.”

That play and the entire final drive were testament to the faith Seattle’s players and coaches have in Smith, who has 10 game-winning drives in the fourth quarter or overtime since becoming Seattle’s starter. He has seven such drives in the past two seasons, the most in the NFL during that span, according to Pro Football Reference. This was his second game-winning move of the season and it couldn’t have come at a more crucial time.

The Seahawks still have long odds to make the playoffs (12 percent) and win the division (8 percent), according to Athletics model, but now they control their destiny (mathematically) with seven games left.

“We have to decide what our season is going to be,” said Smith, who completed 25 of 32 passes for 221 yards. “The 49ers are a great team, hats off to them, big respect to those guys. They have great players. But so do we.”

That game and the 11-play streak that saved the season also further illustrated the chemistry between Smith and Smith-Njigba, who led the team with 10 catches for 110 yards and eclipsed the 100-yard mark for the second straight game, which again showed to be reliable. in a pinch. Smith-Njigba’s ability to find gaps in the zone, stress the defense vertically and generate yards after the catch makes all the difference in the world when it’s winning time.

That’s why Smith texted former coach Pete Carroll and lobbied for Smith-Njigba on draft night in 2023. And that’s why the two spent so much time in offseason workouts across the country so they could be in lock step when it matters most.

“When we travel from place to place, these are the times we talk about,” Smith-Njigba said. “Executing in the tough times, the times we need, that’s communication we have and it shows up.”

No one celebrating during the Seahawks’ postgame scene downplayed how much this victory was off their collective shoulders. From rookies like AJ Barner to veterans like receiver Tyler Lockett, everyone admitted this was more than just a win. Barner said the Seahawks “want a bitter rivalry with these guys,” and they knew they couldn’t establish that without walking into this building and winning for the first time since 2021.

And nothing speaks to how sweet that triumph was more than Smith roaring as he galloped through the end zone after his touchdown before borrowing Golden State Warriors guard Steph Curry’s “night, night” celebration while taunting the home crowd.

Geno Smith blasts the GTS pic.twitter.com/LR25EIGcEL

— FOX Sports: NFL (@NFLonFOX) 18 November 2024

“In the Bay,” said Smith, “you must do it.”

(Photo: David Gonzales / Imagn Images)