Seattle Seahawks quarterback Geno Smith has a knack for producing great performances against the Detroit Lions.

Monday night was certainly no exception.

Summary | Rust over Seattle Seahawks loss | Observations | Immediate response | DK writes franchise history

Smith completed 38 of 56 passes and threw for a career-high 395 yards, a touchdown and an interception in Seattle’s 42-29 loss to Detroit, which was the 11th-most passing yards in a game in franchise history. He also ran five times for 38 yards and totaled 433 yards of offense, the sixth-most in franchise history.

And after Monday night, Smith moved to the top of the NFL’s passing yards rankings. The 33-year-old veteran has thrown for 1,182 yards through the first four weeks of the season, the most in the league. He also ranks second in the league with a completion rate of 72.3%.

“I thought he was ready. I thought he was right. I thought he had a great game,” Seahawks head coach Mike Macdonald said. “I don’t know the stats, but I thought he played really well.”

This was the third time in as many seasons that Smith traveled to Detroit and torched the Lions’ defense in a back-and-forth shootout.

In 2022, Smith completed 23 of 30 passes for 320 yards, two touchdowns and no interceptions in a 48-45 win. Last year, he completed 32 of 41 passes for 328 yards, two touchdowns and no interceptions in a 37-31 overtime win.

This time, Smith and the Seahawks didn’t leave wild Ford Field with a win. But it certainly wasn’t for a lack of offensive production.

Seattle’s defense was missing a handful of key players due to injuries, which is not a good recipe for success against any opponent – especially when facing one of the top Super Bowl contenders in one of the league’s most hostile environments.

But while the Seahawks’ injury-weakened defense struggled mightily against Detroit’s strong attack, Smith & Co. continued to respond. Facing second-half deficits of 21-7, 28-14 and 35-20, Smith led three consecutive touchdown drives of 75, 80 and 70 yards to keep Seattle within striking distance.

“We don’t expect things to be easy,” Smith said. “Adversity is a good thing, especially early in the season. And for us to come out like we did in the second half, you can see the fight that we have on this team, the resilience that we have on this team and just the type of men in this locker room – they all fight for each other. We got back into the game and gave ourselves another chance at the end.”

Smith completed passes to ten different players – 24 to wide receivers, nine to running backs and five to tight ends. He led Seattle’s offense to 516 total yards, the 12th most in franchise history. He helped the Seahawks gain an incredible 38 first downs, tied for the sixth-most wins in NFL history.

And on a night when the game could have easily gotten out of hand, Smith kept Seattle alive until the final minute.

“Our guys fought hard in this game,” Macdonald said. “They went down until the last second. And that’s what I’m most proud of right now and what we’re going to stick with. This is a foundation that we have created here and that we will continue to advance.”

Where does Seattle Seahawks’ Geno Smith rank in the QB hierarchy after a strong start?

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