Geno Smith is expected to be released by the Raiders before the start of the league year on March 11, when the long-expected vacancy at quarterback in Las Vegas reportedly will become official.
The Raiders are projected to use the No. 1 pick in the 2026 NFL Draft on Indiana’s Fernando Mendoza, but at the NFL Scouting Combine last month, general manager John Spytek appeared to keep the door open for Smith to stick around. He said the Raiders don’t necessarily want a rookie to take the snaps as the starter in Week 1 of the 2026 regular season.
Kenny Pickett, Smith’s backup who took over late in the season when he was injured, is a free agent.
But releasing Smith after one season as the team’s starter will save the Raiders $8 million in cap space, sparing the automatic guarantee in Smith’s contract that would’ve hit the books March 13.
The Raiders would eat $18.5 million in dead money but cutting Smith, who was acquired in March 2025 in a trade from the Seattle Seahawks to be the starter for Pete Carroll.
Carroll didn’t last a second season and Smith barely survived the physical beating of playing behind one of the NFL’s worst offensive lines.
He threw a league-worst 17 interceptions and passed for 3,025 yards with 15 touchdowns in 15 starts. He was sacked 55 times.
Smith, 35, has played for five NFL franchises since being drafted 39th overall by the Jets in 2013.
