It is easy to assume that following a three-year contract extension Geno Smith is comfortable as the Seattle Seahawks' starting quarterback. 

And that would be an assumption that isn't entirely ill-founded. But despite the Seahawks being willing to give Smith a contract extension, the organization hasn't come out and said that Smith is their defacto face of the franchise. In fact, head coach Pete Carroll admitted that Seattle is looking into using its top selection on a quarterback. 

No one can really blame Seattle, because picking high in the draft is a rare luxury. And Carroll knows that not looking at a quarterback prospect with a top selection would merely be franchise mismanagement. 

Yet, somehow with Smith knowing all of this, he isn't worried about who may come in and take his starting job. Smith appeared to have signed the extension knowing he will still have to compete with whoever Seattle brings in to call the signals on offense. It is a challenge he is prepared for. And it is one that most quarterbacks wouldn't walk into willingly. But Smith isn't merely a regular quarterback, and all throughout his NFL career he's had to compete. This situation isn't new to him. He just has the luxury of a three-year contract now to deal with it. 

“I love to compete, so I’ll compete with anybody, but I’m also going to help them out as much as I can, the same as we did with Drew (Lock),” Smith said Thursday during his press conference. “Our QB room is so tight-knit and we’re all so connected that we act as one. So whether it’s a young guy or someone else, I want to help that player just like any other player on our team, be the best that he can be.”

What makes Smith special is that he functions as a unifying presence in the locker room. His guys feel like they can talk to him because he has been in their shoes, fighting for a spot at the bottom of the depth chart, and hoping you aren't one of the late training camp cuts. It is that perspective that makes him such a unique starting quarterback in the NFL. 

And as a leader, he isn't shying away from competing with the other quarterbacks Seattle will bring in. He is actually relishing the opportunity to get incrementally better every day.  

“Because that’s my job as a leader, and that’s who I am at heart,” Smith said. “You know, I’m never going to withhold information. I’m always going to try and help guys get better. And so that’s what I want to do, and if that happens then that’s the guy I’ll be.”