ALEX SMITH and moving forward.

[skinsfaninok]

Time for a new AS thread, the other was filled with YOU KNOW WHO talk.

This one needs to be all about #11 and the future of the Redskins.

With Alex Smith, Washington Redskins move on from 2012 QB drama - Washington Redskins Blog- ESPN

Good article here

Glad we have moved on from those guys and that drama filled draft yr and years.

HTTR. Lets go ALEX!

[JoeRedskin]

I will say, the QB diva drama (both the RGIII and Capt. Kirk versions) really exhausted me as a fan. I have been a die-hard for nearly 40 years and the last few have just beaten me down. I just have a hard time being excited about them anymore when, for the longest time, I lived and breathed B&G all year round.

I welcome Alex Smith and just want to be excited about the Skins again.

[skinsfaninok]

Originally Posted by JoeRedskin

I will say, the QB diva drama (both the RGIII and Capt. Kirk versions) really exhausted me as a fan. I have been a die-hard for nearly 40 years and the last few have just beaten me down. I just have a hard time being excited about them anymore when, for the longest time, I lived and breathed B&G all year round.

I welcome Alex Smith and just want to be excited about the Skins again.

Alex won't be a guy that WOW's us and he probably won't have any 400 yard pass games but he will WIN games for us. That is all I care about.

So far so good.

[metalskins]

Isn't it funny that us Redskins fans have craved a solid starting QB for years, and then we finally get RGIII and Kirk Cousins - RGIII having a great first year, Cousins having three top notch years as a starter, we have to deal with some form of drama that sours us on these guys, lol?

That being said, Alex Smith seems to be the consummate pro. He's excited about playing in Washington, and he's proven to put teams in the post season. He's not a social media guy - man, I love that! He just wants to play football. And I think in a town where the sports media will try their best to either build you up or tear you down, the fact that Smith separates himself from all the media drama will be a much welcomed thing.

I want Smith to do his talking on the field, and in the past couple of seasons, he has really taken it up a level. I think Jay Gruden will do him some good.

[Schneed10]

Originally Posted by skinsfaninok

Alex won't be a guy that WOW's us and he probably won't have any 400 yard pass games but he will WIN games for us. That is all I care about.

Yeah the stat sheet only tells part of the story. It's the clutch escape of pressure on 3rd and 7 when he escapes what looks like a sure sack, and runs 8 yards for a first down, where we'll all go 'oh yeah, that's what we were missing.'

He finds ways to keep drives alive, and manages to avoid turning the ball over to the other team. That's why I hate looking at passer rating and other stats. You don't see the value of all those scrambles for first downs, and the value of the turnovers avoided.

Though I do think he'll get his fair share of stats here in Washington. Gruden's scheme deserves a lot of praise.

[skinsfaninok]

Originally Posted by Schneed10

Yeah the stat sheet only tells part of the story. It's the clutch escape of pressure on 3rd and 7 when he escapes what looks like a sure sack, and runs 8 yards for a first down, where we'll all go 'oh yeah, that's what we were missing.'

He finds ways to keep drives alive, and manages to avoid turning the ball over to the other team. That's why I hate looking at passer rating and other stats. You don't see the value of all those scrambles for first downs, and the value of the turnovers avoided.

Though I do think he'll get his fair share of stats here in Washington. Gruden's scheme deserves a lot of praise.

I do think we will see him have 3500 Yards or so and I'd imagine around 25 Td's but like u said the key stat is TURNOVERS and I bet he has less than 10 INTs again. That is what matters and those crucial INT's in close games.

[skinsfaninok]

Originally Posted by skinsfaninok

Alex won't be a guy that WOW's us and he probably won't have any 400 yard pass games but he will WIN games for us. That is all I care about.

So far so good.

EDIT: Then he will break his leg and end his career possibly...

SIGH

[CRedskinsRule]

Originally Posted by skinsfaninok

Time for a new AS thread, the other was filled with YOU KNOW WHO talk.

This one needs to be all about #11 and the future of the Redskins.

With Alex Smith, Washington Redskins move on from 2012 QB drama - Washington Redskins Blog- ESPN

Good article here

Glad we have moved on from those guys and that drama filled draft yr and years.

HTTR. Lets go ALEX!

The drama gave us 2 NFC East championships, I will try hard to remember that from the past 5 years.

BUT YES -

Smith wants a ring, and I believe (full tilt koolaid) he is going to get one here. As draining as the past 5 years was for fans, the players and FO had to experience that too.

Smith's letter to the Chiefs fans was good stuff about his teammates, and I think guys like TW and the Sherriff will eat it up. Richardson, Doctson and Crowder will also find a qb that is working with them and for them. (no old qb commentary only looking forward to the positives).

I want to see a dominant DL player in the draft. We have other needs, but we have to stuff the run, and a young hungry player is what you need.

I also wish Snyder would upgrade the field. Who knows how related it is, but I think that the poor turf adds to our yearly injury count.

HTTR!!

[Ivar the Boneless]

Originally Posted by CRedskinsRule

The drama gave us 2 NFC East championships, I will try hard to remember that from the past 5 years.

BUT YES -

Smith wants a ring, and I believe (full tilt koolaid) he is going to get one here. As draining as the past 5 years was for fans, the players and FO had to experience that too.

Smith's letter to the Chiefs fans was good stuff about his teammates, and I think guys like TW and the Sherriff will eat it up. Richardson, Doctson and Crowder will also find a qb that is working with them and for them. (no old qb commentary only looking forward to the positives).

I want to see a dominant DL player in the draft. We have other needs, but we have to stuff the run, and a young hungry player is what you need.

I also wish Snyder would upgrade the field. Who knows how related it is, but I think that the poor turf adds to our yearly injury count.

HTTR!!

A massive upgrade of the current roster is needed even to sniff the playoffs. We have only one decent RB(CT) and the rest are bums. Richardson upgrades the WR corp, but in my opinion it still is deficient. It is a coin flip if Doctson lives up to the expectations we had when we drafted him. If he shines and stays healthy, we will be fine at WR. JC flourished in the slot and did great damage when he had DJ and PC with him and that is where I hope he plays. We need to make drafting a DL top priority like you said, even two. But we really need a quality corner or safety. In fact two DLs and DBs need to be drafted. Norman is going to need to be replaced soon.

[kcVisitor]

Hello Redskins fans. Greetings from Kansas City! I just wanted to join your site to chime in on Alex Smith, as I have witness first hand the last 5 years of his career.....

Alex Smith is the consummate professional. He handles himself with class and will never have a problem off the field. He is a great leader of men, and the locker room just loves him. With the way things have happened with your guys QB situation in the past 5 or so years, I think this would be a welcomed change. He wont be drama. He just wants to win.

Onto the field stuff....

Alex's greatest strength is his ability to protect the ball. He typically doesnt throw backbreaking interceptions, which can absolutely kill teams at times. He plays good ball control, he doesnt put his defense in bad position, and can manage a game very well.

Another good thing that comes with Alex in THIS situation is his preference to checkdown to running backs and throw to Tight Ends. If Jordan Reed and Chris Thompson can stay healthy, I wouldnt be shocked if they combine for 1800 yards receiving, just on their own. Then throw in Vernon Davis who Alex has a great relationship with, and you might just have something here.

Onto the bad news....

With his ball security style of play, this often times comes at the expense of having a respectable passing offense. Last season was night and day difference with Alex than every other year of his career. In that respect, I hope that year wasnt just an outlier, and he continues to play at that level with you guys. But it took him 5 years as a Chief to play at that level, and 13 years as a pro to play at that level.

Alex has led bottom of the barrel passing offenses for his entire career sans last season. He is very tentative to throw the ball into tight windows. He tends to leave big plays on the field A LOT. His field vision is pretty good presnap, but very poor post snap. When plays break down, he isnt the type to be able to make something out of nothing. If a play doesnt go exactly as plans, far more often than not, its a completely failed play. Another big complaint I have is his pocket presence, or lack there of. He is so afraid of standing tall and taking a hit that he constantly bails from clean pockets right as receivers are breaking open.

He will drive you guys nuts with missed game changing plays. And I dont mean missed like an errant pass. I mean he never even sees wide open WRs on the field. Plays like this should not happen for NFL QBs:



I really didnt want to pile on him, because I genuinely am rooting for him to succeed. But after a while, he will leave you guys wanting more. He is a fine QB to stabilize the QB position for a team. He did a great job in KC at that and made us forget about the stench of Matt Cassel and Tyler Palko. But he is replacing a very good QB in Cousins, and I sincerely hope for your guys sake that you arent expecting an improvement. Alex was carried by great running games and strong defenses that I worry will not be able to carry him in Washington.

Good luck to you guys.

[FrenchSkin]

Agree with most being said.

About that:

Originally Posted by kcVisitor

... When plays break down, he isnt the type to be able to make something out of nothing. If a play doesnt go exactly as plans, far more often than not, its a completely failed play. ...

I'd say it was one of the big critics made about Kirk (even if he had to improved a little bit last year behind a depleted OL), so I don't think it will be a drop off... I even think, from what I saw, Alex Smith's athleticism allows him to extend plays in the Redzone better than Kirk.

[Defensewins]

Originally Posted by kcVisitor

...... Alex was carried by great running games and strong defenses that I worry will not be able to carry him in Washington.

Good luck to you guys.

This was on my mind the first time I head about us getting Alex Smith.
At this point we do not have a strong running game and we are missing a starting caliber LG and have a very inexperienced Center. There is a chance we not will see the same 2017 Alex Smith in 2018.
Alex is being thrown into a much different situation then he had in KC.
This needs to be addressed.

[skinsfaninok]

^ Good post by both of u guys and I agree with both. I love that AS doesn't do the BS tweets and IG post daily (drama wise) and I compare him to a Steve Young, he was in the shadow of Joe for years until he won his ring and earned the respect. Alex is in the shadow of AROD due to being drafted 1 and way ahead of Rodgers. Smith can earn that respect and go down as one of the better QB's if he wins that ring.

[MTK]

Can’t wait until we can bad mouth Smith as he leaves town in 3-4 years lol

Barring a SB win you just know it’s going to happen

[CRedskinsRule]

Originally Posted by MTK

Can’t wait until we can bad mouth Smith as he leaves town in 3-4 years lol

Barring a SB win you just know it’s going to happen

You really believe the old qb was committed to the Skins? No need to answer.

Who knows how Smith will do, but nothing in his history would imply he will set himself above the franchise or be a drama queen. Skins fans are justifiably jaded about QBs and after 20+ years it would be nice to have a FO, staff and players all in agreement and moving forward. I think we now have that, and we will see good things, but if Smith leaves in 4 years and we have been stuck at 500 with another coaching change then yeah Smith may get the same level of frustration at his departure.