Macdonald: Seahawks can win title with Geno Smith

Mike Macdonald on Geno Smith

Head coach Mike Macdonald says he believes the Seattle Seahawks can win a championship with Geno Smith as their quarterback in an interview with FOX 13's Aaron Levine.

RENTON, Wash. - Head coach Mike Macdonald expressed his commitment to Geno Smith as the quarterback of the Seattle Seahawks and his belief that they can win a championship with Smith at the helm.

"Heck yeah, man. Geno is our quarterback," Macdonald said in an interview with FOX 13's Aaron Levine.

Macdonald sat down with FOX 13 on Thursday ahead of the Super Bowl for an interview that will air in its entirety on Seattle Sports Live Sunday night at 10:30 p.m.

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Macdonald touched on many topics – including the hire of new offensive coordinator Klint Kubiak – but the comments on Smith were the most illuminating.

Smith set new career-highs and franchise records for attempts (578), completions (407), yards (4,320) and completion percentage (70.42) for the Seahawks last season. However, Smith also threw 15 interceptions, which was third-most in the league behind the 16 of Kirk Cousins and Baker Mayfield.

Opinions about Smith's ability and what his future with the team should be varies among the fan base. Some fans believe Smith is a replacement-level option that the Seahawks should move on from despite many advanced numbers that support Smith's play.

Macdonald doesn't share that view of his quarterback.

"I don't understand the conversation," Macdonald said. "It's pretty obvious this guy is a heck of a quarterback. He's our quarterback. We love him. Can't wait to go to work with him. We've had a lot of non-football conversations – to keep it legal – over the last month or so. And I know he's really excited about Klint taking over. This guy, yeah, he's a great player, man. And we can win a championship with Geno Smith. We really believe that and can't wait to get back to work with him."

Smith didn't have much support on offense this season amid offensive line and running game struggles. Seattle's rushing attack was fifth-worst in the NFL, averaging just 95.7 yards per game. Additionally, Smith was sacked 50 times, which is third-most in the league, and led the league in red zone interceptions with four.

And yet, Smith finished the season in the top-5 in the NFL in passing yards (4,320, 4th), completion percentage (70.4%, 5th), fourth-quarter comebacks (4, T2), and game-winning drives (4, T4).

Smith has one year left on his current contract and is expected to be seeking a contract extension this offseason. Smith is currently set to make a non-guaranteed $31 million next year with a salary cap number of $44.5 million, per OverTheCap.com. He added $6 million in salary escalators by hitting benchmarks for yards, completion percentage and wins in the season finale against the Los Angeles Rams. That adds to a $10 million roster bonus that Smith was already scheduled to earn on March 20.

Macdonald's comments on Thursday about Smith echoed those he had at the end of the season.

"I want Geno to be here. I think he's a heck of a player," Macdonald said in January. "The first thing always comes back for what's best for the team? I feel like Geno is best for the team right now. … Geno knows how we feel about him, and we love him as our starting quarterback for sure."

The Source: Interview with FOX 13's Aaron Levine.