Throughout a “Dwight Clark Legacy Collection” occasion — a charity occasion benefitting The Golden Coronary heart Fund of San Francisco — former Kansas Metropolis Chiefs quarterback Alex Smith appeared on a panel with three different quarterbacks who’ve additionally been related to the San Francisco 49ers: Brock Purdy, Jeff Garcia and Steve Younger.
Smith spoke concerning the distinctive state of affairs during which he discovered himself the 49ers had chosen him out of Utah with the primary general choose of the 2005 NFL Draft: following Joe Montana, Younger — and even Driskell — as San Francisco’s starter.
“There had by no means been a franchise to have a Joe and Steve,” Smith defined, per NBC Sports activities. “Like, that had by no means occurred. Jeff set the franchise document for yards, so he had carried it on.
“And impulsively to be the No. 1 choose — and as a 20 yr outdated — these had been issues I by no means handled. I had one school scholarship provide. I had been flying below the radar my total life. Now, impulsively. [there were] large expectations put upon me.”
Smith now realizes it was virtually an unimaginable state of affairs.
“It was lots,“ he recalled. “I felt like I needed to be good. I struggled with that my first few years, strolling onto a area on eggshells. Making an attempt to not make any errors. I received to be good, it was day-after-day at observe, within the assembly rooms, form of grew to become my very own worst enemy.
“As anyone can think about, you attempt to do something not to mention play quarterback as a rookie, that’s definitely a recipe for catastrophe.”
It additionally didn’t assist that Smith was often injured throughout his early years with the 49ers. He missed video games in each 2005 and 2007 — after which after being changed by Shaun Smith because the starter throughout 2008’s coaching camp, he was positioned on injured reserve when it was discovered {that a} wire positioned in his shoulder to restore his 2007 shoulder damage had lower by means of the bone.
Smith needed to take a pay lower to return to the group in 2009 — and finally led the 49ers to a 13-3 document in 2011, when San Francisco misplaced to the New York Giants within the NFC Championship. However regardless of this, when he suffered a concussion through the 2012 season, second-year quarterback Colin Kaepernick remained the starter after Smith was cleared to play once more.
After the 49ers went on to the Tremendous Bowl with Kaepernick — the place they misplaced to the Baltimore Ravens — San Francisco felt snug buying and selling Smith to the Chiefs, the place he served because the group’s beginning quarterback through the first 5 years of head coach Andy Reid’s tenure.
Within the final of those seasons below Reid — with first-round choose Patrick Mahomes ready within the wings — Smith lastly discovered to say “f—okay it” on the sector. This helped him flip in the very best season of his profession earlier than Kansas Metropolis traded him to the Washington Commanders.
Watching Mahomes change into the league’s MVP throughout his first season because the Chiefs’ starter — after which lead his group to a few league championships in 5 seasons — appears to have given Smith a brand new perspective on his time in San Francisco.
“I didn’t get to play with a veteran quarterback early on,” he famous, “so there wasn’t essentially that useful resource there. I struggled with it for a number of years earlier than I form of discovered my approach out of it grateful to some teammates and coaches.”
Smith — who turned 40 earlier this month — now serves as an ESPN analyst.
