Jim Moore: Does Pete Carroll’s ‘always compete’ slogan apply to Seahawks’ Geno Smith?

With the Seahawks, every Monday is a “Tell the Truth Monday,” which is one of those things that sounds pretty cool - Pete Carroll will talk to his team about the game the day before and presumably will be blunt and honest and forthright and all of those kinds of words that speak to good leadership.

Another one of Carroll’s hallmarks is “Always Compete,” and unless I’m mistaken, it applies to everything and everyone in the organization. You have to fight to keep your job, and if you’re not good enough, the person behind you will replace you if he’s determined to be a better option.

Sorry, but all of this is B.S. as it pertains to Geno Smith. When he speaks to the media, “Tell the Truth Monday” will turn into “Make Excuses For My Quarterback Monday” or “I’m Gonna Try to Pull the Wool Over Your Eyes (Again) Monday.”

We will hear about the offensive line not giving Geno enough time to operate. We will hear about the 37-3 loss to Baltimore not being Geno’s fault - it was everyone’s fault, from the poor-tackling defense to an offense that was inept overall.

But Smith’s play has been an ongoing issue that’s lasted more than a month now. He has turned the ball over eight times in the last four games with six interceptions and two lost fumbles. He has also been fortunate to have not thrown nine interceptions, three of which were dropped by defensive backs, and all of those looked like they would have been pick sixes.

Facing so much constant pressure, it’s understandable why Smith has lost his confidence, appearing rattled and hesitant. It’s evident in other facets of his game - even routine passes don’t look so routine anymore when he air mails or underthrows an open receiver.

After earning a big contract with his play last year by turning in a season featuring 30 touchdown passes and 11 interceptions while leading the Seahawks to a surprising playoff appearance, Smith has regressed this season. He’s on a pace for 19 touchdown passes and 15 interceptions this year.

Yet Carroll hangs on to him like he’s a life ring in the middle of an angry ocean. Most coaches would have replaced Smith in the fourth quarter Sunday against the Ravens with the game so out of hand. Let’s get some reps for the backup guy. It will help him down the road should the starter suffer an injury. But Smith took every snap for no good reason.

Some coaches would have replaced Smith at the start of the second half. He was that ineffective in the first half. It would have been a bold yet justifiable move, and I don’t think Seahawks’ fans would have been opposed to a switcheroo to someone else, anyone else.

Funny thing is, the Seahawks don’t have some schmo as a backup. Well, Drew Lock might be, but that has yet to be determined. Then again, the Seahawks thought enough of Lock to give him even footing when Carroll miraculously opened up the quarterback competition with Smith last year.

Smith outplayed Lock in training camp and preseason and won the job, rightly so. But in the few times we’ve seen Lock since, he’s flashed in a good way and occasionally struggled too.

Here’s the thing - by now, I’m pretty sure we’ve seen Geno’s ceiling, and that was pretty darn good in the first eight games of the 2022 season. But in the last 16 games, he’s vacillated between marginal to so-so, with some good and bad games sprinkled in. That’s fine if you think of yourself as a one-and-done playoff team like the Seahawks were last year. The Ravens showed them Sunday how far they have to go to be a Super Bowl contender.

With Lock at quarterback, there’s a chance he could be gawd awful and the Seahawks might not even make the playoffs. There’s a chance he could play just like Geno has, which wouldn’t be all that shocking since Lock has been a backup since he entered the league.

But since we still don’t know about his potential, why not find out exactly what it is? And isn’t this the time to find out? I know this isn’t baseball, but when your starter struggles for four starts in a row, don’t you look at other options rather than simply trotting the guy out there again, expecting things to suddenly change?

Lock could be the spark this team needs. And hell’s bells, if he’s not, at least you’re rolling the dice and actually honoring your “Always Compete” mantra. Let’s face it, if Smith were a right guard, he would have been replaced by now.

It’s Monday, if you’re gonna tell the truth, Pete, admit that it’s time to give the ball to Drew Lock.

Jim Moore has covered Washington’s sports scene from every angle for multiple news outlets. You can find him on Twitter @cougsgo, and on KJR-FM 93.3, where he co-hosts a sports talk show from 10 a.m. to 1 p.m. on weekdays.