The Seattle Seahawks have quietly been having a solid season, led by quarterback Geno Smith. Even though his scoring numbers haven’t been elite, Smith is fourth in the NFL in total passing yards, and as a result, the Seahawks are 8-6, good for second in the NFC West.
However, Seattle’s playoff hopes got a major scare last week with Smith appearing to injure himself. Here’s his availability status when the Seahawks take on the Minnesota Vikings in Week 16.
Is Geno Smith Playing in Week 16?
Against the Green Bay Packers in Week 15, Smith went down with what appeared to be a knee injury, but the veteran QB wasn’t willing to abandon Seattle’s spectacular season.
Smith was a full go at practice the entire week, appearing as a full participant every day. As a result, he came off the injury report and is listed as good to go for Sunday’s matchup against Minnesota.
While he will be without tight end Brady Russell, linebacker Trevis Gipson, and safety K’Von Wallace, Smith will have his work cut out for him against the 12-2 Vikings.
Seahawks QB Geno Smith and RB Kenneth Walker III are off the injury report and good to go for Sunday’s game versus the Vikings.
— Adam Schefter (@AdamSchefter) December 20, 2024
Last season, in December as well, an aggravated groin injury caused Smith to miss two games. But the major concern for fans and the Seahawks organization had to be with his previous rendezvous with knee issues.
Back in 2017, when he was still a member of the New York Jets, Smith had a knee injury against the Baltimore Ravens that turned out to be a torn ACL, forcing the Jets to place him on injured reserve and declare him out for the rest of the season.
Having been a full go all week at practice this week, however, it’s clear that this injury isn’t as severe. Thus, Smith should be without any major hiccups against the Vikings.
Smith’s Fantasy Outlook
– Fantasy analysis provided by PFN’s Kyle Soppe
Week 9 was the last time Smith finished inside of the top 20 at the position. Asking him to reverse that trend against the NFL’s blitz-heaviest defense is a tall order.
Seattle’s offense as a whole has been underwhelming as of late. Five of the first six Seahawks games this season went over the betting total, but unders are 6-2 since.
I currently have Smith sitting outside of my top 20, ranking in the same range as the random number generator that is Anthony Richardson.
Seattle Seahawks Week 16 Playoff Scenarios
Last week’s loss put Seattle out of the playoff picture for the time being, with the Los Angeles Rams taking on the top seed in the NFC West. Right now, the Vikings, Packers, and the Washington Commanders stand above the Seahawks in the NFC’s Wild Card picture.
While catching Green Bay or Minnesota is out of the question, the Seahawks can still get to the Commanders, who are just one game ahead of them. The most direct path for Seattle is to win the division, but that might come down to the final week of the year when they face the Rams for their second meeting.
Between now and then, Seattle will take on Minnesota today followed by the Chicago Bears next week. Maintaining their lead over the Arizona Cardinals and the San Francisco 49ers while catching Washington, is going to be a tough task for the Seahawks.
Yet, an upset over the Vikings might change that equation. PFN’s Playoff Predictor currently gives the Seahawks a 42.6% chance at the postseason, but a win against Minnesota would drastically increase those odds.