Brady Henderson, ESPN
SEATTLE — The Seattle Seahawks’ playoff hopes suffered at least one major blow Sunday night in a loss to the Green Bay Packers — and maybe more, depending on the severity of Geno Smith’s knee injury. There will be another major blow.
The veteran quarterback went down midway through the third quarter and did not return after taking a low hit from linebacker Edgerlyn Cooper. Seahawks head coach Mike McDonald said Smith’s knee appears to be structurally intact, but his status for next Sunday’s game against the Minnesota Vikings remains up in the air.
“I’m telling you, this guy is probably the toughest player I’ve ever seen,” McDonald said after the Seahawks’ 30-13 loss. “It’s serious enough that he can’t return to the game. Tomorrow we’ll do all the tests and find out as we go along. But right now, structurally, everything is OK, but we have to get it imaged and so on ”
When Smith threw an incomplete pass on the first possession, Cooper’s diving hit Smith in the back of his right leg, causing his knee to hyperbend as his cleats caught in the turf. Smith was visibly angry after the strike but no penalty was awarded. He began limping off the court, then stopped and lay on his back in obvious pain. He was examined in the medical tent and then limped into the tunnel.
Cooper said he believed the attack was “100 percent” clean.
“He just said I was jumping on his ankle, but I was just trying to knock him down,” Cooper said. “That’s it. It’s that simple.”
Smith limped and jogged back to the sideline in the fourth quarter, at one point standing near the edge with his helmet on and appearing ready to return to the game.
“He wanted to go back, and he was going to go back,” McDonald said. “…and then he can’t go.”
Sam Howell struggled in his role as Smith’s replacement, completing just five of 14 attempts for 24 yards and an interception. He was sacked four times and was pressured on 53 percent of his sacks.
“It wasn’t enough to win,” McDonald said of Howell’s performance in his first extended game of the season. “I know he’s disappointed. It felt like we weren’t getting the ball out on time, and our pass protection wasn’t replenished. I know we gave up a lot of sacks, but they did a good job of covering routes and rushing the ball as well. To the passer, it’s a complementary game for their defense.”
Howell started 17 games last season and had played in just one game until Sunday night in 2024 after being traded to the Washington Commanders in the offseason. After taking over from Smith, he completed a field goal to reduce Green Bay’s lead to 20-6. He also led the team for a touchdown, helping Seattle reduce the point difference to 10 points in the fourth quarter. But Noel’s other five drives ended with four punts and an interception by Cooper before Seattle conceded defeat and ran out the clock in the final seconds.
“I think at the end of the day, I have to get better,” Howell said. “My job is to prepare, play well and help the team win, and I didn’t do that today. So I have to get better and watch the game and learn from it.”
The Seahawks also lost center Olu Oluwatimi in the first half to what McDonald described as knee and quadriceps injuries. He said he was unsure of the seriousness of the matter, only that it would be enough to prevent Oluwatimi from returning. Seattle allowed seven sacks and 12 quarterback hits in its win over the Arizona Cardinals, after allowing zero sacks and two quarterback hits a week ago.
Howell said he had to get rid of the ball faster.
“At the end of the day, sacks are a stat for a quarterback,” he said. “Got to get through checks quicker and get the ball out of my hands before they get to me.”
Before Smith went down, he completed 15 of 19 attempts for 149 yards and an interception, his 13th of the season. Smith was picked off in the end zone and on third down, his back foot was thrown off under tremendous pressure and Seattle was already within short field goal range.
According to ESPN Research, this was Smith’s fourth red zone interception of the season (most in the NFL) and fourth in the end zone (tied for most in the NFL).
“I haven’t talked to him about this game yet, but our whole team just wasn’t good enough to win,” McDonald said. “I’m a part of it, Geno is a part of it, and we have to learn from it and move on.”,
The Seahawks (8-6) won four straight games on Sunday night, vaulting them into first place in the NFC West. But Thursday night’s losses to Green Bay and the Rams moved the two teams into a tie for first place in the division, giving Los Angeles a head-to-head win. In Week 18, Los Angeles and Seattle play at SoFi Stadium in Inglewood, California.
The Seahawks’ loss also knocks them out of the current playoff picture, leaving the Commanders one game ahead of the race for the third and final wild-card spot. Washington also picked up two other conference wins in the tiebreaker.
According to ESPN analysis, a loss on Sunday night drops the Seahawks’ chances of making the playoffs to 45 percent, and that doesn’t take into account Smith’s injury and the possibility that Howell may now have to take over.
“That’s why we have Sam, if he needs to, he’s going to come in and help us win games,” McDonald said. “Yeah, it’s a tough situation. He hasn’t played a game this year. We have confidence in Sam. Guy is a great player. If he gets another chance, he will do well.”
ESPN’s Rob Demovsky contributed to this report.
