Raiders head coach Pete Carroll said Geno Smith (ankle) will not play Week 18 against the Chiefs.
It appears as though Smith’s season is over. Earlier today, Vegas Nation’s Vincent Bonsignore reported that the Raiders will use “a combination of Kenny Pickett and Aidan O’Connell” this week. Neither player should be in starting lineups, in what sounds like some sort of game-day platoon. In his first season with the Raiders, Smith completed 302-of-448 passes for 3,025 yards, 19 touchdowns and 17 interceptions, while rushing 41 times for 109 yards. He is under contract through 2027, though he is owed no money that season. If the Raiders were to cut him this offseason, it would cost them $18.5 million in dead money while saving them $8 million.