Athletes like to win, that's no secret. It's a huge part of why they continue playing the sport they love. They're both competitive and passionate, so when they do lose, it stings a bit and sometimes their emotions can get the best of them.
"I'm really not a great loser," Seahawks quarterback Geno Smith said. "It sucks. I hate it."
During last week's matchup against the Bills, Smith was called for a taunting penalty, when he tossed the football at a defender.
"Those are things that I can't have happen," Smith said. "Everyone's watching me, so if I'm upset, they get a little antsy, so I just have to have a better poker face and just work on it."
Earlier this week when head coach Mike Macdonald was asked about Smith's in-game moment, he said, "I think to take away Geno's (Smith) competitiveness and fire and energy and passion would take away one of his superpowers as a player. Any time someone gets upset, you want to keep it under control, and you want to stay poised. But, we understand the frustration. We've got to bounce back, stay poised, mentally poised. Geno knows that. I thought for the most part, he's done a phenomenal job. We're going to follow the demonstration that he provides, for our offense and the rest of the team. Give him a chance to take a deep breath and go back and attack."
And Smith knows that it's something he has to work to be better at
"I need to, overall, when I watch myself, hey man, just continue to uplift the guys, and if I'm being honest, do a better job at times when we're down. Those are things that I'm constantly improving. I'm not going to say I'm perfect at it. I'm very emotional when it comes to winning and when it comes to doing the right thing. At times, I let my emotions show. Whether that's good or bad, I guess that's a personal opinion, but I'm going to be myself at all times. I want to continue to bring that fire to our team, to our offense. I want to continue to be competitive and not in a bad way, but in a good way. It's always a fine line that you've got to walk, but I've got to be careful with making too many mistakes in that area."
Offensive coordinator Ryan Grubb said Smith's competitiveness and fiery personality on the field is something he would not want to take away.
"Geno has to manage that and I think that that's something that you'd never want to take away from, is his competitive spirit. For Geno, he knows he has the temperature that he has to operate at effectively. He's a fiery guy and he's competitive. It means a lot to him. He's in this building a lot, preparing his butt off. So when it's not going right, he gets frustrated at times. But I think my experience with Geno, he has done a good job of being able to get himself to where he can be a good decision maker and do the things that he has to be an elite NFL quarterback."
While costing the team with penalties is not something that the coaches want, Grubb reiterated something that Macdonald said earlier in the week. "I think I would always rather have a guy that's got some competitive juices instead of having to poke him out of the shoots, so to speak. But I do think there's something to be said about quarterbacks that can maintain their composure in the biggest moments."
And losing doesn't get easier Smith said, joking that he was a crier when he was younger.
"When I was little man, I used to bawl my eyes out. I used to cry. I really used to cry. My mom, she hated it. She didn't understand. I used to cry like a baby, so I don't cry tears anymore. I fight them, I hold them back, but it still feels the same way. It cuts deep. I want to win so bad. I want the guys to enjoy the success of all the hard work we put in. I want to go into the locker room and celebrate with the team and with our guys. So when we don't win, no matter what I did out there, no matter how I played, it all hurts the same."
Although it doesn't get easier, Smith said each loss has taught him something and his competitive spirt and emotion has helped him to become the player he is today.
"It's a big part of who I am," Smith said. "I love the game. I'm passionate about football. I look forward to going to practice every day and trying to get better. The fire that I have inside of me, the chip on my shoulder, I think we've already talked about that, It's never going to leave. I just have to continue to maintain it. And yeah, it is my driving force. It has helped me get to this point and will carry me on into the future, but I can't let it affect me in a negative way."
The Seahawks practiced on Thursday, October 31, 2024 at the Virginia Mason Athletic Center as they get set to host the L.A. Rams in Week 9.
Seahawks tackle Charles Cross (67) practiced on Thursday, October 31, 2024 at the Virginia Mason Athletic Center.
Seahawks tackle Abraham Lucas (72) practiced on Thursday, October 31, 2024 at the Virginia Mason Athletic Center.
Seahawks safety Ty Okada (39) practiced on Thursday, October 31, 2024 at the Virginia Mason Athletic Center.
Seahawks running back Brittain Brown (34) practiced on Thursday, October 31, 2024 at the Virginia Mason Athletic Center.
Seahawks cornerback Nehemiah Pritchett (28) practiced on Thursday, October 31, 2024 at the Virginia Mason Athletic Center.
Seahawks cornerback Damarion Williams (37) practiced on Thursday, October 31, 2024 at the Virginia Mason Athletic Center.
Seahawks quarterback Geno Smith (7) and center Connor Williams (57) practiced on Thursday, October 31, 2024 at the Virginia Mason Athletic Center.
Seahawks safety Ty Okada (39), linebacker Drake Thomas (42) and linebacker Patrick O'Connell (52) practiced on Thursday, October 31, 2024 at the Virginia Mason Athletic Center.
Seahawks quarterback Geno Smith (7) and center Connor Williams (57) practiced on Thursday, October 31, 2024 at the Virginia Mason Athletic Center.
Seahawks tight end Brady Russell (38) and tight end AJ Barner (88) practiced on Thursday, October 31, 2024 at the Virginia Mason Athletic Center.
Seahawks center Jalen Sundell (61) practiced on Thursday, October 31, 2024 at the Virginia Mason Athletic Center.
Seahawks cornerback Josh Jobe (29) and cornerback Damarion Williams (37) practiced on Thursday, October 31, 2024 at the Virginia Mason Athletic Center.
Seahawks linebacker Tyrice Knight (48) practiced on Thursday, October 31, 2024 at the Virginia Mason Athletic Center.
Seahawks quarterback Jaren Hall (15) practiced on Thursday, October 31, 2024 at the Virginia Mason Athletic Center.
Seahawks linebacker Michael Dowell (46) practiced on Thursday, October 31, 2024 at the Virginia Mason Athletic Center.
Seahawks linebacker Tyreke Smith (59) practiced on Thursday, October 31, 2024 at the Virginia Mason Athletic Center.
Seahawks defensive end Leonard Williams (99) practiced on Thursday, October 31, 2024 at the Virginia Mason Athletic Center.
Seahawks running back Zach Charbonnet (26) practiced on Thursday, October 31, 2024 at the Virginia Mason Athletic Center.
Seahawks defensive tackle Roy Robertson-Harris (98) practiced on Thursday, October 31, 2024 at the Virginia Mason Athletic Center.
Seahawks linebacker Derick Hall (58) practiced on Thursday, October 31, 2024 at the Virginia Mason Athletic Center.
Seahawks safety Jerrick Reed II (32), safety Julian Love (20) and cornerback Faion Hicks (30) practiced on Thursday, October 31, 2024 at the Virginia Mason Athletic Center.
Seahawks safety Jerrick Reed II (32) and safety Julian Love (20) practiced on Thursday, October 31, 2024 at the Virginia Mason Athletic Center.
Seahawks safety Jerrick Reed II (32) and safety Julian Love (20) practiced on Thursday, October 31, 2024 at the Virginia Mason Athletic Center.
Seahawks safety Coby Bryant (8) practiced on Thursday, October 31, 2024 at the Virginia Mason Athletic Center.
Seahawks safety Coby Bryant (8) and Devin Fitzsimmons at practice on Thursday, October 31, 2024 at the Virginia Mason Athletic Center.
Seahawks safety Coby Bryant (8) practiced on Thursday, October 31, 2024 at the Virginia Mason Athletic Center.
Seahawks linebacker Tyrice Knight (48) practiced on Thursday, October 31, 2024 at the Virginia Mason Athletic Center.
Seahawks tight end Pharaoh Brown (86) practiced on Thursday, October 31, 2024 at the Virginia Mason Athletic Center.
Seahawks safety Julian Love (20) practiced on Thursday, October 31, 2024 at the Virginia Mason Athletic Center.
Seahawks defensive tackle Byron Murphy II (91) practiced on Thursday, October 31, 2024 at the Virginia Mason Athletic Center.
Seahawks defensive end Leonard Williams (99) practiced on Thursday, October 31, 2024 at the Virginia Mason Athletic Center.
Seahawks defensive end Leonard Williams (99) practiced on Thursday, October 31, 2024 at the Virginia Mason Athletic Center.
Seahawks cornerback Tre Brown (22) practiced on Thursday, October 31, 2024 at the Virginia Mason Athletic Center.
Seahawks wide receiver Tyler Lockett (16) practiced on Thursday, October 31, 2024 at the Virginia Mason Athletic Center.
Seahawks quarterback Geno Smith (7) practiced on Thursday, October 31, 2024 at the Virginia Mason Athletic Center.
Seahawks quarterback Sam Howell (6) practiced on Thursday, October 31, 2024 at the Virginia Mason Athletic Center.
Seahawks quarterback Jaren Hall (15) practiced on Thursday, October 31, 2024 at the Virginia Mason Athletic Center.
Seahawks head coach Mike Macdonald and quarterback Geno Smith (7) at practice on Thursday, October 31, 2024 at the Virginia Mason Athletic Center.
Seahawks quarterback Geno Smith (7) practiced on Thursday, October 31, 2024 at the Virginia Mason Athletic Center.
Seahawks linebacker Dre'Mont Jones (55) practiced on Thursday, October 31, 2024 at the Virginia Mason Athletic Center.
Seahawks safety Coby Bryant (8) practiced on Thursday, October 31, 2024 at the Virginia Mason Athletic Center.
Seahawks cornerback Riq Woolen (27) practiced on Thursday, October 31, 2024 at the Virginia Mason Athletic Center.
Seahawks cornerback Riq Woolen (27) practiced on Thursday, October 31, 2024 at the Virginia Mason Athletic Center.
Seahawks cornerback Devon Witherspoon (21) practiced on Thursday, October 31, 2024 at the Virginia Mason Athletic Center.
Seahawks linebacker Josh Ross (18) practiced on Thursday, October 31, 2024 at the Virginia Mason Athletic Center.
Seahawks linebacker Trevis Gipson (50) practiced on Thursday, October 31, 2024 at the Virginia Mason Athletic Center.
Seahawks linebacker Drake Thomas (42) practiced on Thursday, October 31, 2024 at the Virginia Mason Athletic Center.
Seahawks defensive end Kenneth Odumegwu (77) practiced on Thursday, October 31, 2024 at the Virginia Mason Athletic Center.
Seahawks linebacker Ernest Jones IV (13) practiced on Thursday, October 31, 2024 at the Virginia Mason Athletic Center.
Seahawks linebacker Tyrice Knight (48) practiced on Thursday, October 31, 2024 at the Virginia Mason Athletic Center.
Seahawks linebacker Tyrice Knight (48) practiced on Thursday, October 31, 2024 at the Virginia Mason Athletic Center.
Seahawks running back Kenny McIntosh (25) practiced on Thursday, October 31, 2024 at the Virginia Mason Athletic Center.
Seahawks running back Zach Charbonnet (26) practiced on Thursday, October 31, 2024 at the Virginia Mason Athletic Center.
Seahawks running back Kenneth Walker III (9) practiced on Thursday, October 31, 2024 at the Virginia Mason Athletic Center.
The running backs practiced on Thursday, October 31, 2024 at the Virginia Mason Athletic Center.
Seahawks safety Julian Love (20) practiced on Thursday, October 31, 2024 at the Virginia Mason Athletic Center.
Seahawks safety K'Von Wallace (24) practiced on Thursday, October 31, 2024 at the Virginia Mason Athletic Center.
Seahawks wide receiver Dareke Young (83) practiced on Thursday, October 31, 2024 at the Virginia Mason Athletic Center.
Seahawks running back Kenneth Walker III (9) practiced on Thursday, October 31, 2024 at the Virginia Mason Athletic Center.
