Geno Smith was ready for his chance

Seahawks quarterback Geno Smith has survived in the NFL since entering via the second round of the 2013 Draft. On Thursday night he got the chance to do something he has rarely done in recent years – take snapshots important in a regular season game.

“I played behind three of the longest lasting quarterbacks in NFL history with Philip Rivers, Eli Manning and Russell Wilson,” Smith told reporters after replacing Wilson, who injured his middle finger in his hand. to launch and could not continue. “So it took a while to come, but I’m not at all happy to just go out there and play. It’s about getting wins and leading the team to victory. I like to think that I will be able to do it.

He almost did it against the Rams. He came off the bench to lead Seattle on a 98-yard touchdown, and he was fortunate enough to design an 84-yard winning record with 2:09 to go. Unfortunately, receiver Tyler Lockett fell (maybe pushed, maybe not), and a pitch intended for Lockett was intercepted.

Smith did enough through the night for the local crowd to chant his name over and over. What did he think of it?

“It would have been a lot better if we had won, but it meant a lot, the city hugged me,” Smith said. “This team hugged me, and I’m really grateful for it. I appreciate all the fans. The mood was just electric tonight. I mean, you could see it there. Everyone was on fire. I really thought we had a chance. I thought we were going to come back and do it; unfortunately we did not. But we will bounce back and improve.

Smith’s last departure was in 2017, during the ill-fated temporary benching of Eli Manning. Smith could get his next start in nine days, if Wilson’s injured finger prevents him from playing in Pittsburgh, about 80 miles from where Smith became a star at the University of West Virginia.