Arrowhead Addict
FanSided

Alex Smith is ‘unlikely to ever play again’ says Jason La Canfora

By Matt Conner

LANDOVER, MD - NOVEMBER 18: Alex Smith #11 of the Washington Redskins is helped off the field after being sacked and injured by Kareem Jackson #25 of the Houston Texans in the third quarter of the game at FedExField on November 18, 2018 in Landover, Maryland. (Photo by Joe Robbins/Getty Images)
LANDOVER, MD - NOVEMBER 18: Alex Smith #11 of the Washington Redskins is helped off the field after being sacked and injured by Kareem Jackson #25 of the Houston Texans in the third quarter of the game at FedExField on November 18, 2018 in Landover, Maryland. (Photo by Joe Robbins/Getty Images) /
facebooktwitterreddit

CBS Sports reporter Jason La Canfora says former Kansas City Chiefs quarterback Alex Smith is “unlikely to ever play again” in his latest column.

It’s not a surprise that the Washington Redskins are looking to improve their options at the starting quarterback position heading into 2019. Alex Smith is going to need some time. But Jason La Canfora’s latest report for CBS Sports insinuates that all the time in the world might not be enough for the former Kansas City Chiefs quarterback to return to the field.

La Canfora’s latest column says that Alex Smith is “unlikely to ever play again.” Certainly that has always been an option since Smith first went down in the middle of last season with the sort of grotesque leg fracture that makes every simultaneously gasp and look away. The injury itself was an in-game reminder of the dangers of football, a harsh notice that there’s very real impact on very real people between the sidelines.

More from Arrowhead Addict

But is this really the case, or is this a throwaway line at the end of a paragraph? It’s hard to tell. You’d think if La Canfora had hard news from a team doctor or some representative from the Smith family that he would lead with the news—because it is news, if true. It means the Redskins are most certainly drafting a quarterback instead of flirting with one and it means Smith is likely going to retire.

Instead, La Canfora has thrown it in back, like a buddy who tells your dog to jump on in the bed of his truck as he gives you a quick lift to your house. Are we all supposed to insinuate by now that Smith is unlikely to ever play again? That quote feels very different than assuming a player faces a long uphill climb to return to the field or that rehabilitation is going to be grueling.

Smith has shown an ability to overcome long odds in the past, but this seems to mean that he’s heard news of the worst kind from a specialist who has told him there’s no amount of grit or determination that can do anything at this point.

Given the buried nature of the news, it’s hard to know what’s true at this point, but the former Kansas City Chiefs quarterback certainly deserves a better exit if so. As the quarterback who helped right a franchise mired in wrong, Smith should have plenty of years left in the NFL, even at an above average level. Here’s hoping La Canfora was making a personal projection and that Smith can show the fans in Washington what he’s capable of.

Home/Kansas City Chiefs News