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Seahawks coach Pete Carroll buried the lead Friday night.
Carroll was nearly two minutes into his opening statement in his postgame press conference when he announced that Geno Smith had won the starting quarterback job. Smith will start the season opener when former quarterback Russell Wilson returns to town with the Broncos.
“He’s earned it. He’s earned the job,” Carroll said. “The timing was wrong for us for Drew (Lock). He just ran out of time on his bid for that. That’s clear to me.”
Lock contracted COVID-19 days before his scheduled start in the second preseason game. He didn’t start in the final preseason game Friday night against the Cowboys, but he did see extended action.
In nine possessions, he threw three interceptions and a touchdown, and the Seahawks scored 20 points with Lock at quarterback.
But it was clear from the moment Smith re-signed with the Seahawks that his job was to lose. He spent two seasons as Wilson’s backup and has 34 career starts, giving Lock an edge from day one of the contest.
“Geno, he knows our stuff and he does it really well and he understands and commands everything we’re doing,” Carroll said. “It will give us the best chance to play great football right away.”
Carroll explained the decision to the team in the locker room after the 27-26 loss to the Cowboys.
“It wasn’t a major reaction,” Smith said. “Obviously, I’m grateful for the opportunity and grateful, but I have a lot of work ahead of me. That was my mindset from the beginning: prepare to go out and win games. This is just the first step in the process, but it’s really about winning. None of that will matter if we don’t go out and win the games we’re supposed to win.”