Not a bad position, but with that contract, I wouldn't expect much value back in a trade when he can just be cut and become a free agent. I think his arm strength is always going to be a problem, and paying him $7.5 million next year may be a stretch for teams that actually need QBs, such as my Raiders, the Cardinals, the Jets, and KC, due to the cap hit.
Agreed. But I don't think the Niners will feel they have to cut him, either. He's under contract. Unless they go super-deep and/or win the SB, they can sell him on, one, he's under contract and two, come compete for the starting position. The dude is far less of a bitch than most pro athletes. The current situation shows that.
You know what though, it's unfair to him. The guy has stuck with the team through all the bullshit, and he was finally doing well, but still lost his job because of an injury (and not a serious one). I'm not saying I want him back in the starting lineup, but I think he's good enough to start in the NFL and if the team doesn't see a future for him as Niner, they need to either cut or trade him. He has earned that. Relegating him to a backup in his prime is unfair and disrespectful to a guy who has given quite a bit to San Francisco. Let him go somewhere else and get a fresh start.
as a niner fan you might have a more respected perspective, but....he was only good last year and then this year, so what did he really give them? not like he was carrying his weight when they blew
But, shit, that could be said about a lot of QBs in the NFL. How many current starters have been consistently good over their entire careers? You could probably count them on one hand. Brady Manning Brees Rodgers Manning had some down years. Roethlisberger is amazing when he's healthy, but that seems rare. Who else is there? It seems like every year there's a guy who has a career year, and then falls off. Outside of the DB, it has to be one of the most mercurial positions in the NFL.
Dude, check his stats comparing his performance with and without Harbaugh and then try to tell me it isn't mostly about the coach in his case.
Tell me how he's mentally weak! Your totally digressing from the argument and talking about something I've never said. It's not like Smith never showed flashes of potential. Harbaugh is a great coach, no doubt. I give a lot of props in getting what he was able to out of Smith. But the Niners were a complete waste before Harbaugh showed up. Suddenly other players are stepping up, Smith gets more protection, etc. The coaches prior to Harbaugh (and nearly the entire team) were absolute garbage.
Mike McCarthy. Norv Turner. Jim Hostler. Mike Martz. Jimmy Raye II. Mike Johnson. 6 offensive coordinators in his first 7 years. How many quarterbacks have been successful with that kind of system turnover? Name me one. I'll wait...
Don't forget the head coaching. Those dudes were terrible. I'm sorry - I love Harbaugh. I think he's an excellent coach. But thinking that it's solely the coach that is responsible for Smith's turnaround is pure lunacy. Dude battled a serious shoulder injury, had no protection, no offensive options (besides Gore), not to mention the coaching/OC issues.
Not to mention he finally got a healthy Crabtree, Vernon Davis, etc. Now this year he had a lot of weapons in Moss, Crabtree, Davis, Manningham, etc.
Not trying to completely argue against Alex SMith, but last year was easily his best year. But it's not like he had consistency last season. Last season was his first with, again, a new HC and OC.
As an outsider with absolutely no skin in the game, I think AS looks like an ideal backup. He protects the ball, he's smart, but his ability to drive the ball down the field and make stick throws is just not there. As for whether or not teams will hotly pursue him via trade, I guess part of that is going to come down to how desperate they are for a "placeholder" type of QB -- presumably, the acquiring team understands that there's not much left to develop out of him and he's going to be the kind of guy that will professionally manage a game for you but probably won't win them for you. The only teams that immediately spring to mind are those with a "defense-first" philosophy, or teams that primarily see themselves as a running team. So maybe a team like the Jets, Bears, Vikings, Jacksonville, Baltimore, etc. would be a decent landing spot, but I don't see teams offering much more than a fifth or sixth round pick for him given the fact that the Niners have no leverage (because they can't eat his cap hit).
http://www.sfgate.com/49ers/article/Where-will-Alex-Smith-land-next-year-4133430.php New article up on sfgate.com. This beat writer says Smith will be coveted, and the Niners will likely receive something significant in return. Oh, and Smith is third in QB rating this season. I just think people haven't seen as much of Smith as they like to say they have. As I've said, he's no star, but he's a better QB than people give him credit for.
When can you start trading? He's due for a 10 million dollar roster bonus in April, so I imagine he'll be cut if he's not able to be traded before then. The Eagles got a 2nd rounder for Kolb....but he didn't have nearly as large a contract as Smith.
