Market for Alex Smith will be strong, Ian Rapoport says
Ian Rapoport of the NFL Network thinks the Chiefs could get a solid trade haul in return for Alex Smith.
Kirk Larrabee - 3 hours ago 0
The Kansas City Chiefs should have no problem finding a trade partner for Alex Smith this offseason and could come away with a strong haul in return, according to insider Ian Rapoport of the NFL Network.
Rapoport, who reported over the weekend the Chiefs would be listening to offers for Smith this offseason, was a guest on The Day Shift on 610 Sports Radio Kansas City Monday, where he was asked about the level of interest in Alex Smith and whether or not the Chiefs will be able to trade him.
"A lot," Rapoport said. "A lot, and yes."
Smith is coming off his best statistical season of his career as he threw for 4,042 yards in 2017 with 26 touchdowns, five interceptions, and a 104.7 passer rating. Rapoport says it's that performance along with what Smith can bring to a team's quarterback room that makes him such a hot commodity.
"He was number one in the NFL in passer rating," Rapoport said. "He is a great person, so if you trade for him and then draft a quarterback high, you will get someone who's going to help him. All you need to do is ask Patrick Mahomes. It's actually an amazing thing what a great person Alex Smith is because he's dealt with a lot of crap in his career despite mostly awesome and has come out the other side of it."
There have been several teams speculated to be good fits for Smith, with different situations among each of them. There's the Jacksonville Jaguars and Buffalo Bills, playoff teams that are still fighting quarterback woes; there's the Arizona Cardinals, a team whose starting quarterback, Carson Palmer, just retired, but still has enough talent to be competitive next season; and there's a team like the Cleveland Browns, who might be interested in acquiring Smith to not just help the team start winning again but to be a mentor to a quarterback they might select in the draft.
The latter situation might not seem like an ideal one to many quarterbacks, but Smith has done it before, and Rapoport thinks he might not have a problem doing it again.
"If I was a franchise quarterback, would I really want to help the guy who is brought in to replace me? I don't know," Rapoport said. "For some ridiculous reason, Alex Smith has done it several times, and he's continued to be a great guy. He's going to end up benefiting from all this because first of all, he's probably going to wind up being traded somewhere great. Second of all, I think his legacy will sort of live on and people will know what a good person he is."
Trading Smith would free up $17 million in cap space for the Chiefs, a much-needed amount for a team currently projected to be over the cap next year, and would also allow them to replenish some of the draft picks they traded away in multiple trades in recent months. It cost a 2013 second round pick and a 2014 conditional pick (which turned out to be another second round pick) for the Chiefs to acquire Smith from the San Francisco 49ers in 2013, and Rapoport thinks the Chiefs could get even more in return for Smith than that.
"I think they might do better this time," Rapoport said. "He is a hot commodity, and they are in unbelievable position."
Originally Posted by Hog's Gone Fishin:
Nick Foles just might get Philly a SB. We're better off having Smith here to backup than without. I'd rather cut Juston waste of money Houston and Hali to get cap money.
Sorry, this whole post is full of asshattery.
Philly has the least shot of remaining teams to win the SB.
Smith is not going to stay on as a backup.
The chiefs are not going to pay smith 20M dollars to ride the pine.
Cutting Justin Houston will cost more against our cap than paying him to play this year. [Reply]
Originally Posted by Chief Roundup:
It is not about the backup winning us the SB. If your starting QB is out for the season then you are fucked. It is about having the ability to win a few/several games until your starter comes back.
You mean like Damon Huard did in 2006?
It's absolute fucking bullshit that you HAVE to spend tons of money on a backup. Just because a backup like Brett Hundley isn't good enough to mask the enormous deficiencies of that Green Bay team doesn't mean they should have paid out the ass for a better backup.
If your roster isn't a piece of flaming AIDS shit because you saved that money and put it towards building a better team, then you don't need your backup to do very much in order to win you some games in the regular season.
Jesus fuck, we've been living with a backup QB doing exactly that for five straight fucking seasons now. It's not fucking hard to put a leash on a QB and prevent mistakes on offense. [Reply]
Originally Posted by RealSNR:
Jesus fuck, we've been living with a backup QB doing exactly that for five straight fucking seasons now.
Don't you mean 12?
But yes...it would be just horrid if we had to put in a backup who couldn't hit a WR for a TD or something...this team could never win in such a situation! They might even miss the playoffs!!! ZOUNDS! [Reply]
Originally Posted by Hammock Parties:
Don't you mean 12?
But yes...it would be just horrid if we had to put in a backup who couldn't hit a WR for a TD or something...this team could never win in such a situation! They might even miss the playoffs!!! ZOUNDS!
Okay... lol. Obvious overlook on my part.
But there's another thing I missed, too. Andy Reid played with how many backups in Philly? How many backups did he get jobs with other teams? How many of them won games for him?
Andy Reid kept that core together for a long time because he never once gave a huge contract to any of those guys. Because he was a coach who could take Detmer and Feely and win games ugly with them, and when it came time to pay them, he just picked somebody else out.
Hell, I still remember how he revived the career of Jeff Garcia, and how the Eagles were perhaps at one of their most dangerous heights with him. He didn't exactly pay out the ass for Garcia. He was just a discarded vet who needed a job.
That's all you need in a backup when your coach is Andy Reid. [Reply]
KC will need a backup I just wouldn’t pay a ton of money for one. If you’re on your backup most of the time, you’re fucked. This year is rare (Eagles and Vikings). Also hope they draft another late project QB or get one in USFA so Andy can groom them to try and flip them for picks. [Reply]
Originally Posted by MotherfuckerJones:
KC will need a backup I just wouldn’t pay a ton of money for one. If you’re on your backup most of the time, you’re fucked. This year is rare (Eagles and Vikings). Also hope they draft another late project QB or get one in USFA so Andy can groom them to try and flip them for picks.
I'm sure Veach and Reid can do better than Bray and will find a suitable trainee. [Reply]
I want the Chiefs to draft a guy. Develop him as if Mahomes will fail. They need to always be working on plan B. You never know, that mid/late round guy might end up being special.
Just say no to retreads, period, including backups. [Reply]
