There is really no need to read anything further than the title because it says it all. Just for the fun of it though, I’m going to dissect the man, Alex Smith, and the bone heads in KC management who want him on their team. I obviously don’t know how much Andy Reid wants Alex Smith on the Chiefs but I have to assume he has some say in the QB decision. Andy has seen better coaching days and I feel that there are intangibles in his life which are affecting his coaching decisions. Andy had a rough season this year starting with the death of his son Garrett due to an overdose. The other thing that shocks me is that there was hardly ever a story about steroids being found in his locker. With Garrett’s death and the possibility of your son distributing steroids, I have a hard time thinking you can forget about this overnight and have a keen mind on coaching no matter what comes out of Andy’s mouth to the public. Where Andy’s head is at aside, I can’t understand why the Chiefs want Alex Smith.
This line would make you think highly of Alex Smith, “According to the N.F.L.’s statistics, in his last 26 regular-season starts, Smith had a 20-5-1 record with 32 touchdown passes, 10 interceptions and a 95.6 passer rating. He was the N.F.L.’s top-rated passer when he was knocked out of a November game with a concussion, and he was replaced by Kaepernick.” If you are a believer of recent results being more important than past, then I can see why you might have faith in Smith. However, I don’t believe this to be the case. My entire point of this post is to explain why Alex Smith is a below average QB who is a terrible fit for the Chiefs.
Looking at Alex Smith’s past is important to gauge what type of player he is. In his rookie year Smith threw 1 TD vs 11 INT’s. The next year he improved a bit throwing 16 TD’s against 16 picks but the team still had a 7-9 losing season. In 2007 he got injured mid-season but this little tidbit should give an understanding of the year he was having, “among all NFL quarterbacks who qualify for league statistics, only the Jets’ Kellen Clemens had a poorer passer rating than Smith (57.2), Smith completed under 50% of his passes, far below the league average of 60%. He missed the entire ’08 season because of injury. The ’09 season should be noted that he lost his starting job to SHAUN HILL. In 2010 he was starter again and lost his first 5 games as starting Q while succumbing to back up Troy Smith in week 7 due to injury. Smith had won just 19 games in 50 career starts through 2010. This quick summary of his career is how Alex Smith should be viewed and not the magic that happened in 2011.
2011, presto Jim Harbaugh, Alex Smith’s lifeline and why he is even relevant. The Niners finished 13-3 this year and went to the AFC championship but his play was probably not the main reason. “While the 49ers finished with their most wins since 1997, they did it while ranked 29th of 32 teams in the NFL in total passing yardage for 2011 and Smith was often cynically referred to as a game manager.” He threw 17 TD passes against 5 picks which is proving that his job is to not lose the game for his team. There is nothing wrong with having a QB like that on a solid team with a superior defense. This past year, 2012, was more of the same for Smith who led his team to a 6-2 mark before being replaced by Kapernick due to injury. Not surprisingly, with a better QB than Smith, the Niners were able to get to the Superbowl and have shots at winning the championship. Colin Kapernick coming in for Smith was once again a lifesaver to Smith’s injury plagued career.
I hope those background paragraphs should give a clear idea to what kind of QB Smith is. Alex Smith = Trent Dilfer. I’m only a fantasy manager but I know that if I were the Chief’s, I’d put my Superbowl chances at 0.0 if Alex Smith were my QB. Is Alex Smith an upgrade over Matt Cassel (a guy who benefited from a Belichick/Patriot team and would fit perfectly in this post)? Probably but you don’t want Alex Smith on your team as a QB. Teams win Superbowl’s with great quarterbacks. Alex Smith can win some football teams on a team that has brilliant coaching, stout defense, and supporting players up to wazoo. The Chiefs can hand the ball off to Jamaal and that’s it. The only hope they have for a Superbowl is a better QB who isn’t named Alex Smith. Why do you think teams are so big on experimenting with rookie QB’s? It’s the hardest position to find and maintain. Never forget that Kurt Warner took the ARIZONA CARDINALS to the Superbowl and this post is more backup. I know this post is long winded but what are these people in management thinking when they make moves like this. They obviously aren’t reading rnningfool.com.
You forget that in EVERY SINGLE season up to Jim Harbaugh, Smith had a new OC. That means new way that you’re being told to play. Added to that you had Mike Singletary. An unsupportive and lousy head coach. He would tell Smith to go, “Make a play.” So when he tried to overdue it and make a play his head coach wanted Smith would end up with tons of mistakes. So Alex basically gave his coaches the bird and took what the defense gave him. In his last 152 attempts, under Singletary (and when he played how he felt comfortable), he threw one pick. Basically, Alex Smith can play QB. No he doesn’t suck. He needs the tools, he needs the coaching, and he needs the scheme that fits his style of play. That’s what every QB needs to be successful.