Why Geno Smith’s second chance means so much

Geno Smith was having fun.

Dropping back to pass, he saw Broncos LB Alex Singleton beat RB Travis Homer up the middle on a blitz. Smith ducked under Singleton, drew two Broncos defenders towards him, and threw the ball to a wide open Will Dissly for a Seahawks TD.

Smith led the Seahawks to a 17-16 victory over the Broncos in Week 1, with fans chanting his name as he trotted off the field. The quote that went viral after the game was Smith’s and it was a doozy:

This moment for Geno means so much, for many different reasons. One of the most important is the reality that for the first time in eight years, Smith will have another chance to lead a team.

This doesn’t happen for Black QBs. who are still barely getting the fair opportunities not only to start, but to fail and show growth and development (looking at you, Mike Martz). This is largely the biggest issue. Black QBs are rarely given the chance to fail and learn from the mistakes they made, while white QBs get every opportunity.

Since Smith was drafted in 2013, very few Black QBs have received a chance to lead a team after being released from their original teams. QBs like Jameis Winston, Tyrod Taylor, Teddy Bridgewater and Cam Newton along with Smith currently are the only Black QBs to recently get another chance to start at QB, despite showing that they were worthy of being a starting quarterback at this level. This is all while QBs who are white get multiple opportunities to start for multiple teams, while not being as good.

I’m sure you’ve all heard the quote, “work twice as hard to get just as far” when it comes to Black people working in a predominantly white society. The idea that Black people have to be exceptional just to be given one chance to be in positions of power has been constructed over hundreds of years. Stemming from the racist idea of Black men being either violent and malicious or lazy, the first time they fail, white people in positions of power are quick to never give them a chance again. A study in 2018 found that non-white people have a smaller chance of re-entering the workforce after being in prison.

Sports is a reflection of our society, and while the NFL has made progress in Black QBs getting the first chance to start, the league has a long way to go when it comes to allowing Black signal callers to simply not have good games and learn from them. The Martz example comes from him saying that Bears QB Justin Fields “can’t do anything” after the Bears beat the 49ers 19-10 ... in a literal monsoon. Did he expect him to throw for 400 yards in driving rain?

This is why Smith starting and the crowd getting behind him means so much. Geno is getting another shot to prove his worth. Down in New Orleans, Winston is the QB of a Saints team that could make the playoffs. Even Jacoby Brissett, who is starting while Deshaun Watson is suspended, is getting a shot for a team that has playoff aspirations. You can see the passion from Brissett as he talks about what it means to him:

The concept of redemption and trying again for Black QBs rarely ever comes, and for Smith to get this moment, it means more than just what happens on the field.