Geno Smith was impressive in his Las Vegas Raiders debut as he led the team to a 20-13 victory against the New England Patriots. He threw for 362 yards, one touchdown and one interception while completing 70.6% of his passes and adding 10 rushing yards. He posted a 120.8 passer rating.
The two-time Pro Bowler set a Raiders franchise record for passing yards in a team debut. He also became just the sixth player in franchise history to throw for at least 350 yards while completing 70% of his passes. Furthermore, only reigning MVP Josh Allen threw for more yards than Smith in Week 1.
The veteran quarterback received plenty of praise from the national media following his performance against the Patriots. Perhaps most notable in their positive words was former Raiders head coach Jon Gruden.
Jon Gruden among the national media members to praise Raiders QB Geno Smith
Smith was largely underrated by media members heading into his first season with the Raiders. That was not the case after his strong Week 1 showing, as Jon Gruden and several others praised his play on social media.
"Geno Smith of the Las Vegas Raiders, 70% completion, 362 yards. No rain, no run game, no tuck rule, he shreds the Patriots," Gruden said.
There was something in the air this week from quarterbacks escaping New York.
— Jon Gruden (@BarstoolGruden) September 8, 2025
Here’s who had me feeling NICEY!
Presented by @DraftKings #DKPartner pic.twitter.com/JO9MvUBuQf
Sports Illustrated's Albert Breer also praised Smith's debut Raiders performance.
"At some point, people are gonna realize how good Geno is ..."Sports Illustrated's Albert Breer
In separate pieces for The Athletic, Smith was ranked as the 19th-best quarterback in the league, while the Las Vegas quarterback room was ranked as the seventh-worst. The ranking seemed disrespectful from the beginning, as since 2022, Smith has ranked fourth in passing yards and completion percentage while ranking eighth in passing touchdowns.
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While preseason rankings are ultimately meaningless, Smith has already proven that he is much better than the 19th-best quarterback in the NFL. His performance on Sunday further solidified that he is much closer to the top 10 than the rankings that he received.
The Raiders quarterback showed that he is capable of being one of the best signal-callers in the league when things are truly clicking. In addition to throwing for the second-most yards in the league in Week 1, he also led the league in yards per completion while trailing only two-time MVP Lamar Jackson in yards per attempt.
Smith will have to prove that he can be consistent for 17 games to truly get the credit his play warrants. Following his Week 1 performance, however, he received some much-deserved national praise, and hopefully, he can parlay it into another strong performance in Week 2.