The best Kansas City Chiefs to ever wear the uniform: No. 11
By Matt Conner
In this special offseason series, we analyze the best players in Kansas City Chiefs history to wear every single uniform number. Here’s No. 11.
When I was entering into high school, I started with a brand new school system. I was the new kid who knew absolutely no one, and the route I chose was more of a class clown. I was pretty self-deprecating in those years, and part of my narrative was about being horrible at sports. My history wasn’t that great, to be honest, and so it was easy to just sort of add to the story.
The truth is, however, I wasn’t that bad (and maybe that’s still true?) and would have enjoyed participating more at the time. It was just easier to cave in to fear, let others take the stage and laugh at myself in some sort of weird high school social strategy. But my jump shot isn’t bad and I should have owned the moment more than I did. That made it harder to change later.
Sometimes it doesn’t matter what a player does later on in his career. If he’s acquired a reputation of any sort early on, it’s impossible at times for that player to be known as anything else. The options for us at No. 11 today fit that mold to some extent, none more so than our winner.
Let’s get on with things.
The Others
Let me say this to you straight: Damon Huard was better than you think he was.
Maybe you already know this, but I doubt it. I certainly didn’t realize it. I threw Huard on the pile with every other scrap heap quarterback the Chiefs seemed to rely upon for years of offensive misery, but that was unfair of me. Huard deserves better.
So let me make up for it by noting here that Huard was actually a decent quarterback for the Chiefs from 2006 to 2008. In fact, the Chiefs might have been better off convincing him to play another season in 2009 than trading for Matt Cassel. However, a new regime will want a new quarterback and let’s also be clear that Huard was not hitting the Pro Bowl anytime soon.
Huard was, however, already getting old when he became an option for the Chiefs in 2006, when he was 33. He started 21 games in three seasons and threw 24 touchdowns and 18 interceptions in that time and went 10-11 as a starter. He also completed 61.5% of his passes and averaged 7 yards/attempt during his tenure. He finished with a QB rating of 83.3.
If none of this wows you, at least know that the men that followed were miserable. Tyler Palko, Brady Quinn, Matt Cassel, etc. They would all start a dozen games or more in the next few years and they would all lose the vast majority of them. I often threw Huard on the same pile, but the reality is he was a middling option who could compete at least against the league’s lesser teams.
That’s at least much better than I remembered him.
The Runner-up: Elvis Grbac
I’ve always liked players with no vowels in a syllable (a la Minnesota Twins first baseman Kent Hrbek), so I’m already geared to love Grbac. It was also easy to love his passing ability. Grbac enjoyed a single Pro Bowl season for the Chiefs in 2000 when he threw 28 touchdowns and 14 interceptions.
Grbac is largely known for not being able to get over the hump for a few seasons, but he still came away with a career record with the Chiefs of 26-21. He also had a game in which he threw for over 500 yards. That’s badass for anyone.
The Winner: Alex Smith
There’s little to say here. You already have your mind made up.
You either like Alex Smith or you don’t. You either give him credit for the Chiefs success in recent years or you think he’s the hurdle from even greater success. And nothing I write here will rewrite that for you.
He started with a reputation. I can’t help you now, Alex.
Next: The Best to Wear It: No. 10
Congratulations to Alex Smith for being the greatest Chiefs player to ever wear the No. 11 on his uniform!