Jim Moore: Is Geno Smith the best bang for the buck player in the NFL right now?

So when do kids in the Pacific Northwest start buying No. 7 Geno Smith jerseys and wear them proudly to school?

When do fans and media types who are still skeptical of Smith fully embrace this blossoming phenomenon in Seattle?

When do we quit calling him a game manager and simply call him one of the best quarterbacks in the league and a possible face of the franchise for years to come?

If you had thrown out these questions a month ago, you would have been called an idiot. But now these things are actually debatable and maybe even worth answering “right now!”

I’ll freely admit that I was hanging out in the anti-Geno Smith camp, roasting marshmallows around the fire while insisting that Drew Lock should be the Seahawks’ starting quarterback this year. I was so convinced he would be that I bet $500 on Lock and lost.

Some of it had to do with uncertainty about Lock’s ceiling while we appeared to know what Geno’s was: a head-scraping 6 feet at best. His record as a starter was 13-21 coming into the season, throwing as many interceptions as touchdown passes in his career.

He was believed to have merely won the job because he took care of the ball better than Lock, but we’re finding out that he’s much more than that. The biggest thing we’ve seen through four games? He’s been a better quarterback than Russell Wilson.

Smith has completed a staggering 77.3 percent of his passes and is projected to throw for 25 touchdowns with only nine interceptions. His 108.0 rating is much higher than Wilson’s 91.1. And the Seahawks and Broncos are both 2-2. To think that Smith was Wilson’s backup for several years; now it’s fair to wonder if the roles would be changed if they were still on the same team. Given the sample size, is that taking it too far? No doubt, but Wilson at nearly 34 could be entering the twilight of his prime while Smith at nearly 32 could be shockingly rejuvenated if recent results persist.

You could also argue that Smith is more mobile than Wilson - or at least as mobile - after he ran for 49 yards and a touchdown in a scintillating all-around performance in a 48-45 victory over the Lions on Sunday. It was also Smith’s second straight game of passing for more than 300 yards.

Forget the comparisons to Wilson - Smith is right up there with the league’s best at the season’s quarter pole. Tua Tagovailoa is No. 1 in passer rating at 109.9 followed by Patrick Mahomes at 108.4. Guess who’s next? Geno at 108.1. He’s ahead of guys like Aaron Rodgers and Tom Brady.

He is earning $3.5 million this year, which could make him the best bang for your buck player in the league if he keeps playing like this. To think that Denver just gave Wilson a $245 million contract with $165 million of it guaranteed.

This was supposed to be a rebuilding year, even one that was supposed to be disastrous yet wonderful at the same time if it meant the Seahawks were so bad they could get a top pick and find their next franchise QB in the 2023 draft.

But with Smith excelling at this level, think about what could happen now and in the future. No one has looked like a juggernaut in the NFC West. If San Francisco beats the Rams Monday night, every team in the division will be tied at 2-2.

Down the road the Seahawks wouldn’t have to necessarily grab one of the top quarterback prospects in the draft, they could re-sign Smith and build around him.

Is that another reach? I want to say yes, but I’m thinking Pete Carroll would say no. This is what the head coach envisioned when Wilson was traded to Denver, having a quarterback who would thrive - and enjoy playing - in his offensive system.

After watching Sunday’s game, the defense needs a lot of work. The Seahawks are allowing a whopping 428 yards a game and 6.7 yards per play. Going into the season you would have thought the Seahawks would have one of the worst offenses in the league and in no way would be equipped to win a shootout. Yet they did, racking up more than 500 yards against Detroit.

So now you’ve got a team that can win in a variety of ways - and I know, lose in a variety of ways too. One week after writing that the Seahawks should just call it good on this season and tank the rest of the way, Smith burst into my living room and smashed my laptop, basically calling me a journalistic fraud.

Maybe we’ll look back at season’s end and think, well, the Lions were terrible again, that’s why the Seahawks were so good against them and so bad against the better teams in the league. But as of this moment, Smith and the Seahawks, with improvement from the defense, appear capable of holding up against all comers.

In the past if Smith had something like he said Sunday - “I can play better. I’m definitely not exceeding my expectations.” - we would have scoffed. And it’s still hard to see him playing better than he has in the last two games.

But to this point, it’s fair to say that Smith could be a season-changing savior for the Seahawks.

Jim Moore has covered Washington’s sports scene from every angle for multiple news outlets. You can find him on Twitter @cougsgo, and on 950 KJR-AM, where he co-hosts a sports talk show from 10 a.m. to 1 p.m. on weekdays.