Chiefs Offseason: Land Of A Thousand Dances

Will Alex Smith take the next steps and become elite building off of his late season and postseason performances?

There’s every indication that Alex Smith will take another step forward in 2014. Whether or not he will become elite is in question more than if he will progress. If you look over the last three years for Alex, his is an ascending trajectory. His performance in the playoffs (30/46, 4 TDs, 0 INTs, 57 yards rushing, 119.7 QB rating) was special and the numbers don’t tell the whole story. With star RB Jamaal Charles going down early in that game A.S. took over and helped the Chiefs offense create 44 points that day. However, it was Alex Smith’s highlights that mesmerized fans and have given us visions of grandeur like: the shovel pass to FB Anthony Sherman near the goal line or the 10 yard touch pass to Knile Davis for a TD.

There was also a play to forget: the score was 41-31 and it was the first play of the 4th quarter, Smith threw a laser pass down the right sideline over shooting RB Cyrus Gray who had run a beautiful route and found himself wide open. Yes, Smith will look back, like many of us, and wonder what could have been had he completed a pass to the wide open Gray. The Colts were well on their way to a comeback but, if Smith connects with Gray on that play, who most certainly would have strolled into the end zone, it would have stopped the comeback flat.

Can we judge a player on one play? No, but it’s still an unforgettable play. Will that play hold him back? No, I don’t see that happening at all. I see Smith, and the team, being buoyed by their incredible offensive performance in that game and then building upon what positive things the defense had done last year.

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