Who Should I Start? Geno Smith or Sam Darnold

Wednesday, December 31, 3:41 PM

Las Vegas Raiders head coach Pete Carroll said that quarterback Geno Smith (ankle) will not play on Sunday against the division-rival Kansas City Chiefs in the Week 18 regular-season finale, according to Ryan McFadden of ESPN. "I hate closing the door on any opportunity, but it's going to be really hard for him," Carroll said. Smith suffered a serious ankle injury in the Week 17 loss to the New York Giants and won't suit up for a meaningless contest to close out the regular season. With the 35-year-old veteran wrapping up a brutal first year in the desert, backup Kenny Pickett is expected to start this weekend. Aidan O'Connell could also end up splitting time with Pickett against KC. Smith was one of the worst starting QBs in football in 2025, completing 67.4% of his 448 pass attempts for 3,205 yards, 19 touchdowns, and a league-leading 17 interceptions in 15 starts.

Saturday, January 17, 6:48 PM

Seattle Seahawks quarterback Sam Darnold (oblique) is officially active for Saturday's NFC Divisional Round game versus the San Francisco 49ers. The 28-year-old injured his oblique during Thursday's practice and hasn't thrown since then. According to Brady Henderson of ESPN, Darnold did not come out for early warmups with the rest of the team. It's also worth noting that Darnold hasn't been seen on the field with about an hour left until kickoff. Darnold has struggled in both games against the 49ers this season, throwing for 348 yards while rushing for 25 yards on eight attempts with no touchdowns and interceptions in both games. With the oblique injury and lack of production versus San Francisco earlier in the year, Darnold is a risky start in playoff leagues and is mainly a GPP play in DFS.