Alex Smith is a guy who has been looked upon as a hopeless case in the Bay Area over the years. But has he ever had a fair shot? And does he have what it takes to be a winning QB as a Redskin?
My gut feeling say Smith will be back with the 49ers this season, but he has been linked to the Redskins, Vikings, Dolphins, Cardinals, and Titans. I also have a funny feeling (kind of like gas pains after eating a Chipotle burrito) that Donovan McNabb will be the starting QB for the Skins on opening day this year. I’ll be honest, I have a lot of friends that are Niners fans and I happen to watch them a great bit.
CSN Bay Area recently did a poll of Niners fans and 70% of them said they would be ok with Smith coming back this year. I think this shows that he has shown a lot of people flashes of brilliance. Singletary completed handled him the wrong way and this guy has been beaten down every time he makes a mistake, and he has also always put on an extremely short leash with a veteran behind him his whole career. But as many times as Smith has been yelled at to go walking away with his head down, he’s put up decent numbers the past couple of years. His combined passer rating is 82, and he’s thrown 32 TDS, 22 INTS, and has a completion percentage right at 60%. But yet he’s always been part of this carousel of bad QBs (sorry Shaun Hill/Maryland fans) in San Fran.
To me, Alex Smith coming to DC would be a lot Jake Plummer and Brian Griese going to Denver. Under the Griese/Plummer era in Denver the Broncos were 76-52, the kind of success I wouldn’t mind seeing in the District. When it comes to Big Shanny and Lil’ Shanny coaching up a QB, I’m behind them 100%. Also by signing a guy like Smith (I’m thinking a 3 year deal) you eliminate another need and can focus more on other areas to improve (the trenches!). Out of all the FA QBs I think Smith has the most upside if put in the right situation, where he can focus on his game and not always look over his shoulder.