Rubes Posted January 15, 2012 Share Posted January 15, 2012 Here's a guy who has had a thoroughly forgettable career in the NFL before this season, particularly given his #1 draft status. How would people have described him before this season? Below average? Not a leader? Unable to win in the clutch? Unable to win, period? Bust? Yet there he was yesterday, after guiding his team to the #2 seed in the NFC, leading one impressive, clutch drive after another, making Greggggo's defense look soft down the stretch, and making some damn impressive throws for the huge win in his first playoff game. Sure, he's had one of the league's best defenses to carry him during the season, but that defense disappeared in the fourth quarter and it was all on him to lead them to victory. What the hell does this mean? Mind you, this is no "I told you so" post. I thought Smith (who I followed here at Utah) would never make a good NFL QB, and before this season I thought he was an official bust. Is it all Harbaugh? Is it all coaching, then? Would someone like Sanchez be in the championship game with a better coach? Is it a big reason why good college players fail in the NFL? I have no idea, I just couldn't believe Smith was looking like an all-star out there, and thought I'd put it out there. Discuss. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Over 29 years of fanhood Posted January 15, 2012 Share Posted January 15, 2012 What I think about him? Coaching matters Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
H2o Posted January 15, 2012 Share Posted January 15, 2012 Played a decent game for 55 minutes and turned in a great performance in the clutch. The coaching staff made all the right calls on offense the last 5 minutes of the game and then executed to perfection. Vernon Davis was clearly someone the Saints could not match up with and the QB sweep was pure genius. They never saw it coming. Smith has had a great year, compared to the previous, and the only thing that has really changed is a couple of FA and a new staff. My hat goes off to Harbaugh and what they have done out there as a whole. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
NoSaint Posted January 15, 2012 Share Posted January 15, 2012 Very hot and cold day. Looked lost for awhile, two first half fumbles. Had receivers drop easy balls too though. Two minute drill was sloppy wasting a ton of time, made a couple really nice throws though, saints blow coverage and the tackle. That Harper missed tackle made Alex smith a ton of cash. You can win with the kid but he'd not be in my top 10 or possibly even 15 to go into battle with. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
agardin Posted January 15, 2012 Share Posted January 15, 2012 It shows what can happen when a franchise get back on track. I am glad for him that Harbaugh showed patience with him ( he did draft a QB though) and gave him another chance. Truth was that Smith was his best option at the time and it has worked out. There is no doubt in my mind that Smith has proven to be an NFL starter in the right situation, something that I couldn't say before. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Dr. Fong Posted January 15, 2012 Share Posted January 15, 2012 To me it's proof that until the whole team is improved you really don't know what you have at QB. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
3rdand12 Posted January 15, 2012 Share Posted January 15, 2012 Coaching goes a long way with a qb. And having Harbaugh believe in Alex has shown that to be true. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
NoSaint Posted January 15, 2012 Share Posted January 15, 2012 He made a short inside throw to Davis that went long because of davis and harper being athletic mismatches and the goal line pass for the win was perfect. Before that he was murdering the clock and out of control. The drive before his legs saved him - which is important (tebow wins!) First half was two fumbles and two tds - the tds being when the corner played 6 yards deep in the endzone on a short slant and on a nice ball that Harper tackled Jenkins on for the real long gain and score. He struggled mightily but when it mattered the team played better than the saints team. That game wasn't won by great qb play though. Vernon davis and that defense put the team on their back while smith didn't screw anything up. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
BuffaloWings Posted January 15, 2012 Share Posted January 15, 2012 I agree with the coaching thing. He's got the physical tools and make-up of the prototypical NFL QB, but didn't have the right people around him (coaches, players, etc). Harbaugh just seems to relate to him very well, which is a HUGE factor in Smith's success. I think he showed a lot of moxie and poise and grew up a lot in those last 2 minutes...finally. That said, while he's not flashy, he does a little more than "manage the game" for them. He may not approach the Aaron Rodgers/Tom Brady/Peyton Manning level of elite QBs, but he'll be up there. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Coach Tuesday Posted January 15, 2012 Share Posted January 15, 2012 He reminds me of Trent Edwards, but luckier. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
JimBob2232 Posted January 15, 2012 Share Posted January 15, 2012 Tells me that sometimes you gotta stick with a guy you believe in. You cant be changing QBs every 2 years. People forget, but Drew Brees was AWFUL too. Until San Diego drafted Phillip Rivers to replace him. Some players just "get it" a bit later than others. Unfortunately, in Buffalo, we run these guys out of town too early. IMO should have given JP and Trent more time...but more importantly, COMMITTED to them for a few years rather than constantly trying to run them out of town. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
NoSaint Posted January 15, 2012 Share Posted January 15, 2012 (edited) Tells me that sometimes you gotta stick with a guy you believe in. You cant be changing QBs every 2 years. People forget, but Drew Brees was AWFUL too. Until San Diego drafted Phillip Rivers to replace him. Some players just "get it" a bit later than others. Unfortunately, in Buffalo, we run these guys out of town too early. IMO should have given JP and Trent more time...but more importantly, COMMITTED to them for a few years rather than constantly trying to run them out of town. Care to reevaluate awful? He had a bad month in year 3, otherwise a pretty stellar career the whole way. Year 3 was really the single year he struggled and it wasn't that bad outside a few games. I wouldn't say all caps AWFUL http://espn.go.com/nfl/player/stats/_/id/2580/drew-brees Edited January 15, 2012 by NoSaint Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
BuffaloWings Posted January 15, 2012 Share Posted January 15, 2012 Tells me that sometimes you gotta stick with a guy you believe in. You cant be changing QBs every 2 years. People forget, but Drew Brees was AWFUL too. Until San Diego drafted Phillip Rivers to replace him. Some players just "get it" a bit later than others. Unfortunately, in Buffalo, we run these guys out of town too early. IMO should have given JP and Trent more time...but more importantly, COMMITTED to them for a few years rather than constantly trying to run them out of town. Agree to a point...sometimes you can see the QB doesn't get it or won't get it. Edwards seemed to get it, but he had a coaching staff that dragged him down and put him in bad spots. He also lost confidence in himself after the concussion. You also can't be changing coaches/coordinators *every year*, which is what San Fran did. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
JPS Posted January 15, 2012 Share Posted January 15, 2012 He's playing for the NFC Championship. He led the 49ers to gme winning drives twice in the last 4 minutes. He's good. He's better thn our guy. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Tcali Posted January 15, 2012 Share Posted January 15, 2012 Smith at least had the tools to improve.He is an accurate passer. Of course he now has a great coach and an almost great D.He also has excellent WRs and TE and RB. Fitzy would be much better(than he is now) with this superior coach and the superior D and the superior WRs/TE....However, he doesnt have the accuracy that Smith has(or even the arm strength-altho Smith doesnt have that strong of an arm)- and that will always be a problem. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Astrojanitor Posted January 15, 2012 Share Posted January 15, 2012 I always like him and felt he was underrated. You could always tell there was a very good player just waiting to get out. He just developed slower than most. One of the many reasons why chasing a QB out of town every time there's a mediocre season is probably a bad idea. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Stealth Posted January 15, 2012 Share Posted January 15, 2012 I think the 49er's finally have the coaching to maximize the talent of their highly drafted roster, and finally got them to play near their athletic talent level. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mr. WEO Posted January 15, 2012 Share Posted January 15, 2012 He made a short inside throw to Davis that went long because of davis and harper being athletic mismatches and the goal line pass for the win was perfect. Before that he was murdering the clock and out of control. The drive before his legs saved him - which is important (tebow wins!) First half was two fumbles and two tds - the tds being when the corner played 6 yards deep in the endzone on a short slant and on a nice ball that Harper tackled Jenkins on for the real long gain and score. He struggled mightily but when it mattered the team played better than the saints team. That game wasn't won by great qb play though. Vernon davis and that defense put the team on their back while smith didn't screw anything up. This sums it up well. Smith at least had the tools to improve.He is an accurate passer. Of course he now has a great coach and an almost great D.He also has excellent WRs and TE and RB. Fitzy would be much better(than he is now) with this superior coach and the superior D and the superior WRs/TE....However, he doesnt have the accuracy that Smith has(or even the arm strength-altho Smith doesnt have that strong of an arm)- and that will always be a problem. No--he's one of the least accurate passers in the league. This is his "best" regarding percent--61.5. He's a career 58% passer, which sucks. If you are a person who forms your opinion on a QB after one game (say, like Ralph Wilson), you might be prone to being very impressed by Alex Smith today... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
RuntheDamnBall Posted January 15, 2012 Share Posted January 15, 2012 Shows me we could win with fitz, especially if we played in a dreadful division. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mr. WEO Posted January 15, 2012 Share Posted January 15, 2012 Shows me we could win with fitz, especially if we played in a dreadful division. Some would argue that, other than NE, the AFCE was pretty dreadful this year... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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