SEATTLE — Seahawks coach Mike Macdonald has given veteran quarterback Geno Smith another strong endorsement.

And this time, he didn’t just say that he wants Smith to remain the team’s starter in 2025. In an interview with FOX 13 TV in Seattle, Macdonald answered in the affirmative when asked whether he expects that to be the case.

“Yeah. Heck yeah, man,” Macdonald said. “Geno’s our quarterback. I don’t understand the conversation. It’s pretty obvious this guy is a heck of a quarterback. He’s our quarterback. We love him. Can’t wait to go to work with him.”

Macdonald himself has fueled some of the speculation about Smith’s future, even if unintentionally. At season’s end, he was asked how involved he’ll be this offseason in Smith’s contract situation, with the two sides expected to try to work out an extension as the quarterback enters the final year of his deal. Macdonald lauded Smith but spoke in nondefinitive terms that seemed to convey uncertainty about whether Smith would remain a Seahawk.

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Cleveland Browns defensive end Myles Garrett spoke publicly Wednesday for the first time since announcing a trade request Monday, telling the “Rich Eisen Show” that he and the organization are not aligned on the team’s future.

“It’s not a decision I take lightly,” said Garrett, speaking on Radio Row in New Orleans. “It took time and lots of conversation. Just looking at the trajectory of the team, talking to some of the higher-ups, I have a lot of respect for them, but I just don’t think we’re aligned on where the team is going in the near future.”

Garrett, the NFL’s reigning Defensive Player of the Year, on Monday released a statement announcing his desire to be traded from the Browns, who drafted him with the No. 1 pick in 2017.

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Garrett, who has made the playoffs only twice in eight years, made comments during the season that he wanted to know the team’s offseason plans before further committing to the organization. The 29-year-old has two years remaining on the record-breaking five-year, $125 million extension he signed in 2020 but has no more guaranteed salary.

The Browns’ 3-14 finish was their worst since going 0-16 in 2017, Garrett’s rookie year. Cleveland holds the second pick in the 2025 NFL draft.

“I just felt it was time,” Garrett said. “I had taken my time after the season, kind of relaxed and decompressed emotionally. Wanted to distance myself a little bit and spent a little time talking to my family about how we feel about this decision.”

Garrett said he also consulted with Lakers star and Akron native LeBron James, who twice left the Cleveland Cavaliers, about “what a transition looked like for him, what was his thought process going into it before he left Cleveland.”

NEW ORLEANS — San Francisco 49ers two-time All-Pro tight end George Kittle is the USAA 2024 Salute to Service award winner.

Minnesota Vikings running back Aaron Jones and Los Angeles Chargers defensive end Morgan Fox were the other finalists for the award.

The award recognizes the “exceptional efforts by members of the NFL family to honor and support the military community.” Kittle will be recognized at NFL Honors on Thursday night.

Kittle hosts military and frontline heroes at every 49ers game, donating more than 400 tickets over the past six years. Kittle and his family amplify community stories, nearly 60 of those involving veterans, through the Hidden Pearls Podcast founded in 2020. Kittle and his family created an app offering free mental health resources to veterans, including the meditative practices he uses while playing.

Kittle also has donated more than $250,000 to military nonprofits and further highlighted military organizations through My Cause My Cleats, including the Pat Tillman Foundation, TAPS, Merging Vets and Players, Operation Freedom Paws and Operation Surf.

“George Kittle truly embodies the essence of the Salute to Service Award,” NFL commissioner Roger Goodell said in a statement. “His dedication to honoring service members and involvement with numerous military organizations makes him the perfect choice for this honor. The NFL family is proud of his dedication to give back to those who sacrifice for our country and congratulates him on this tremendous achievement.”

USAA, a provider of insurance, banking and other financial services to U.S. military members, veterans and their families, will contribute $25,000 in Kittle’s honor to the official aid societies representing each of the military branches. The NFL Foundation will match USAA’s donation of $25,000, which will be donated to Kittle’s military charity of choice.

Kittle’s uncle and grandfather served in the military.

“I am incredibly thankful and honored to be this year’s Salute to Service Award recipient,” Kittle said. “My appreciation for the military stems from watching my Uncle Pat serve multiple tours with the National Guard and seeing firsthand how much it impacted him and his family while he was overseas. Without my family and their unwavering support, I would not be able to create these genuine and authentic relationships with the real heroes and the ones who should be receiving this award, the active-duty members, veterans, TAPS and families that have lost loved ones in the line of fire.

“The support you see for the military around the league is so important and the fact that guys on every team do it, not just the nominees, is awesome. We are allowed to live the lives we live here because of the sacrifices they make, so we’re just trying to honor them, show our support, and share as much love as we can.”

The NFL Referees Association on Tuesday joined league commissioner Roger Goodell in dismissing suggestions that officials favor the Kansas City Chiefs when working their games.

A day after Goodell called it a “ridiculous theory,” NFLRA executive director Scott Green said in a statement that Goodell’s comments were “spot on.”

League rules prohibit officials from speaking publicly except in postgame pool reports that are monitored by the league. But Green, a retired referee speaking on behalf of the officiating union, pointed out that crews don’t work more than two of any team’s games.

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