Geno Smith makes Raiders history in Week One win over Patriots

After years of watching inconsistency and mediocrity at the quarterback position, Geno Smith’s debut felt like a tonic for long-suffering Las Vegas Raiders fans.

Smith soundly outdueled 2024 third overall pick Drake Maye in Sunday’s game between the Raiders and the New England Patriots. The veteran quarterback threw for 362 touchdowns, one touchdown and an interception to help lead the Raiders to a 20-13 win on the road. Outside of the interception in the first quarter that was deflected away from tight end Brock Bowers, Smith put on a near-flawless performance under center.

The masterclass allowed Smith to etch himself into the Raiders’ history books.

Smith broke a 45-year old franchise record in the win over the Patriots.

With 362 yards, Smith passed for the most yards ever on n a debut game with the Raiders, surpassing Dan Pastorini’s 317 yards in 1980.

“I’m me. That’s all I think about. I don’t think about anything else; I’m me,” Smith said postgame, per the Raiders’ official website. “I know who I am, I know what I can do.”

In one game, the decision to trade for Smith back in March appears to have panned out.

While it might not be surprising given Smith’s history with head coach Pete Carroll, it was amazing to see how much command the veteran had on his new offense already. He had no issue getting the deep ball out, with nine of his completions going for 20+ yards. Smith also found seven different receivers throughout the game, showing a willingness to spread the ball around and keep the Patriots defense from keying in on specific players.

“That’s how we want to play football,” Smith said. “We want to make sure that we make the right reads. I want to make sure that I’m making the right decisions and getting the ball into the hands of the playmakers. We’ve got a lot of great players and that’s something that we can take advantage of. I want to spread the ball around if need be but I want to find the open guy, first and foremost.”

Smith impressed Raiders fans with his debut, and they will get an up-close look in the team’s home opener against the Los Angeles Chargers on Monday.