Who Should I Start? Geno Smith or Taylor Heinicke

Saturday, March 23, 9:37 PM

Seattle Seahawks quarterback Geno Smith will enter the 2024-25 campaign as the team's starter. New head coach Mike Macdonald has avoided the topic since taking over. However, he finally addressed the situation with NFL Media's Tom Pelissero. "Very confident in Geno," said MacDonald. "Geno's going to be our starter." The signal-caller had a down season in 2023-24, throwing for 3,624 yards, 20 touchdowns, and nine interceptions. He also completed just 64.7% of his throws, a significant reduction from the previous year. But Smith was the 2022 NFL Comeback Player of the Year, so if anyone can turn things around, it's him. Yet, if he struggles during the season, he could find himself sitting behind Sam Howell, who was acquired by the Commanders just over a week ago. For now, fantasy managers shouldn't reach for Smith in drafts. With that in mind, while the 33-year-old might struggle at times, especially under a new head coach, he'll likely have more than a few productive fantasy showings.

Tuesday, April 2, 2:21 PM

Atlanta Falcons quarterback Taylor Heinicke took a pay cut recently from an expected $5 million base salary in 2024 to $1.21 million, according to Roster Management System. His $1.32 million roster bonus, which was due just after the league year began last month, was instead classified as a signing bonus. His $40,000 per game active roster bonus was also removed from his contract. The reduction in his deal lowers Heinicke's salary cap number from $8.96 million to $4.53 million, including a cash value of $2.53 million. If Atlanta were to release him, he would cost $3.32 million in dead money with only a cap savings of $1.21 million. The 31-year-old got a chance to start in 2023 when Desmond Ridder was benched, but Heinicke did nothing to separate himself and also got hurt. He'll enter 2024 as the backup to starter Kirk Cousins.