Comments about Alex Smith on KNBR

Originally posted by taney71:

Originally posted by D_Niner:

Originally posted by bigwads:
I was listening to the recordings on KNBR and I wanted to break my computer. There was a bunch of callers hammering Alex Smith again...as well as some of the commentators.

I simply don't get the "haters" at all. All I hear are comments about how the Niners won't go anywhere with Alex...ever. We will never make the playoffs without a "probowler" QB or a Hall-of-fame QB...this is the Niner way and nothing will never change.

The same remarks were made about Eli Manning until he won the superbowl. If the Giants would have lost that superbowl the same Eli haters would be calling up saying, "I don't care if he is a probowler" or "he just doesn't have any leadership ability."

I heard also about how the "excuses" surround Alex Smith and that's all he is...a bunch of excuses.

I am sick of this crap. The so called "excuses" that cloud Smith's career are not excuses...they are JUSTIFICATIONS...there is a big difference.

1. 6 OC's with different systems in 6 years...give me a freaking break
2. Playing with a torn shoulder...really? Is this an excuse...you haters are a joke
3. DROPPED BALLS DROPPED BALLS DROPPED BALLS!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! If his WR's would actually catch his balls we would have won the Indy, Houston and Seattle games...now how's that for an excuse. And, his comp. % would be around 65% with a rating of just under 100!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! Now that's just a fact.

I am sick of this conversation and I am sick of the haters out there with blinders on their eyes...wake up...the dude can play.

Next year I hope that our offense does the following to utilize our personnel and AS the best.

1. Rollouts
2. Power running game
3. bootleg play action that allows AS to run
4. Shotgun

NO 3,5,7 DROPS PLEASE...THIS IS WHAT A.S. DOESN'T DO WELL, SO STOP DOING IT. But the 4 things about are what A.S. does better than average.

What I'm sick of are the excuses...

Alex needs to let all that crap go and either show the public he can play or we need to move on. IMO, he's been doing a better job of that lately; but, he hasen't shown quite enough for us to say our QB problems are settled yet...

SMith has never made excuses and never got into a public relations battle. He had every right to attack Nolan for what he did to him a few years ago but didnt'. Smith is a class guy and deserves better than what some of us 9ers fans and the organization have put him through. If anything this organization has wasted a perfectly good 1st pick by changing OCs and offensive schemes every year. I'd like to know if that has ever happened before in the history of the NFL. Having your 1st pick QB get 5 OCs in 5 years and have to learn 3 offensive systems during that time.

Yup, those would be the excuses I'm talking about... It's time to stop with all that talk and evaluate if this kid has it or not. He's showing good things; but, hasn't answered all the questions yet.

I dont understand when people say, "Alex needs to let it go...," "Alex needs to find a way..." What the hell are you talking about? He has let it go and he has found a way. The guy is a starter again and is playing well DESPITE what he's been through and he's NEVER used anything as an excuse even once. The ONE time he said anything is when Nolan the slime ball questioned his toughness.

But yeah like others have said...there will always be people that blame Smith for everything or just never like him. Even to this day, I have buddies that are 49er fans that dont like Steve Young because he "ONLY" won 1 super bowl and "we could have won at least 2 more with Joe."

Some people are just never satisfied with anything. Mix that in with today's need for INSTANT success and gratification and you have 10x more people constantly bi*ching and complaining.

Originally posted by D_Niner:

Originally posted by taney71:

Originally posted by D_Niner:

Originally posted by bigwads:
I was listening to the recordings on KNBR and I wanted to break my computer. There was a bunch of callers hammering Alex Smith again...as well as some of the commentators.

I simply don't get the "haters" at all. All I hear are comments about how the Niners won't go anywhere with Alex...ever. We will never make the playoffs without a "probowler" QB or a Hall-of-fame QB...this is the Niner way and nothing will never change.

The same remarks were made about Eli Manning until he won the superbowl. If the Giants would have lost that superbowl the same Eli haters would be calling up saying, "I don't care if he is a probowler" or "he just doesn't have any leadership ability."

I heard also about how the "excuses" surround Alex Smith and that's all he is...a bunch of excuses.

I am sick of this crap. The so called "excuses" that cloud Smith's career are not excuses...they are JUSTIFICATIONS...there is a big difference.

1. 6 OC's with different systems in 6 years...give me a freaking break
2. Playing with a torn shoulder...really? Is this an excuse...you haters are a joke
3. DROPPED BALLS DROPPED BALLS DROPPED BALLS!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! If his WR's would actually catch his balls we would have won the Indy, Houston and Seattle games...now how's that for an excuse. And, his comp. % would be around 65% with a rating of just under 100!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! Now that's just a fact.

I am sick of this conversation and I am sick of the haters out there with blinders on their eyes...wake up...the dude can play.

Next year I hope that our offense does the following to utilize our personnel and AS the best.

1. Rollouts
2. Power running game
3. bootleg play action that allows AS to run
4. Shotgun

NO 3,5,7 DROPS PLEASE...THIS IS WHAT A.S. DOESN'T DO WELL, SO STOP DOING IT. But the 4 things about are what A.S. does better than average.

What I'm sick of are the excuses...

Alex needs to let all that crap go and either show the public he can play or we need to move on. IMO, he's been doing a better job of that lately; but, he hasen't shown quite enough for us to say our QB problems are settled yet...

SMith has never made excuses and never got into a public relations battle. He had every right to attack Nolan for what he did to him a few years ago but didnt'. Smith is a class guy and deserves better than what some of us 9ers fans and the organization have put him through. If anything this organization has wasted a perfectly good 1st pick by changing OCs and offensive schemes every year. I'd like to know if that has ever happened before in the history of the NFL. Having your 1st pick QB get 5 OCs in 5 years and have to learn 3 offensive systems during that time.

Yup, those would be the excuses I'm talking about... It's time to stop with all that talk and evaluate if this kid has it or not. He's showing good things; but, hasn't answered all the questions yet.

I'm fine with that but you can't place him in a vacuum. His history is there. It has to be dealt with. Sure it would have been great if the team had better players in 06 and 07 and we actually had a consistent offensive philosophy but that didn't happen. Also, it would have been great if Smith didnt' get hurt in 07. But all of that stuff happened. Now Smith haters want to act like none of the bad crap happened and Smith is just a 5 year bust. That's of course not true cause he hasn't had many opportunties to succeed until now.

Originally posted by FourNine49:
Who cares?

Alex Smith will be the starting QB next year whether anyone likes it or not. And guess what? Fot the first time in his career, he will have the same OC for a 2nd year.

I agree! Smith will be the starting QB next season, Hill will be back up unless Nate can beat him out next season's camp.

We do not need to draft a QB unless Scot/Singletary feel that one of the top QB's are a sure fire, can't miss prospect.

We need to build the O-line to protect Smith and open holes for Gore.

PLEASE STOP THESE THREADS!!!!

Originally posted by taney71:

Originally posted by D_Niner:

Originally posted by taney71:

Originally posted by D_Niner:

Originally posted by bigwads:
I was listening to the recordings on KNBR and I wanted to break my computer. There was a bunch of callers hammering Alex Smith again...as well as some of the commentators.

I simply don't get the "haters" at all. All I hear are comments about how the Niners won't go anywhere with Alex...ever. We will never make the playoffs without a "probowler" QB or a Hall-of-fame QB...this is the Niner way and nothing will never change.

The same remarks were made about Eli Manning until he won the superbowl. If the Giants would have lost that superbowl the same Eli haters would be calling up saying, "I don't care if he is a probowler" or "he just doesn't have any leadership ability."

I heard also about how the "excuses" surround Alex Smith and that's all he is...a bunch of excuses.

I am sick of this crap. The so called "excuses" that cloud Smith's career are not excuses...they are JUSTIFICATIONS...there is a big difference.

1. 6 OC's with different systems in 6 years...give me a freaking break
2. Playing with a torn shoulder...really? Is this an excuse...you haters are a joke
3. DROPPED BALLS DROPPED BALLS DROPPED BALLS!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! If his WR's would actually catch his balls we would have won the Indy, Houston and Seattle games...now how's that for an excuse. And, his comp. % would be around 65% with a rating of just under 100!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! Now that's just a fact.

I am sick of this conversation and I am sick of the haters out there with blinders on their eyes...wake up...the dude can play.

Next year I hope that our offense does the following to utilize our personnel and AS the best.

1. Rollouts
2. Power running game
3. bootleg play action that allows AS to run
4. Shotgun

NO 3,5,7 DROPS PLEASE...THIS IS WHAT A.S. DOESN'T DO WELL, SO STOP DOING IT. But the 4 things about are what A.S. does better than average.

What I'm sick of are the excuses...

Alex needs to let all that crap go and either show the public he can play or we need to move on. IMO, he's been doing a better job of that lately; but, he hasen't shown quite enough for us to say our QB problems are settled yet...

SMith has never made excuses and never got into a public relations battle. He had every right to attack Nolan for what he did to him a few years ago but didnt'. Smith is a class guy and deserves better than what some of us 9ers fans and the organization have put him through. If anything this organization has wasted a perfectly good 1st pick by changing OCs and offensive schemes every year. I'd like to know if that has ever happened before in the history of the NFL. Having your 1st pick QB get 5 OCs in 5 years and have to learn 3 offensive systems during that time.

Yup, those would be the excuses I'm talking about... It's time to stop with all that talk and evaluate if this kid has it or not. He's showing good things; but, hasn't answered all the questions yet.

I'm fine with that but you can't place him in a vacuum. His history is there. It has to be dealt with. Sure it would have been great if the team had better players in 06 and 07 and we actually had a consistent offensive philosophy but that didn't happen. Also, it would have been great if Smith didnt' get hurt in 07. But all of that stuff happened. Now Smith haters want to act like none of the bad crap happened and Smith is just a 5 year bust. That's of course not true cause he hasn't had many opportunties to succeed until now.

Again more of those excuses I was talking about.

It's true he has a History; but, so do you and so do I. Things in my past don't impact how I'm evaluated at work today or how I will be evaluated doing my job tomorrow. It's all about what I can do now that allows me to bring home a paycheck. With that said, it finally looks like Alex is starting to earn his.

Originally posted by kem99:
The funny thing is if Hill had done the exact same thing on Monday, he would be praised for being a "winner" and the stats wouldn't matter.Smith has now played in 7.5 games, if we extrapolate that out he would be looking at about 3,400 yards, 61% Completion percentage, 30 TDs and 18 INTS. The TD/INT ratio could be better, as could the yards/attempt but not too bad considering he had not played in 2 years, didn't get any snaps in practice running the 49er plays for 6 weeks, Crabtree signed late, etc.

With all that said, while this year revived his career, next year will be the biggest of his NFL life. He'll go into the offseason as the starting QB, get a 2nd year in the same system and with the same OC, get the majority of the snaps in the workouts, etc. It should all be there for him to either succeed and become at least a top 10-15 QB or prove that he's okay but not likely to lead a team deep into the playoffs.

Originally posted by D_Niner:

Originally posted by taney71:

Originally posted by D_Niner:

Originally posted by taney71:

Originally posted by D_Niner:

Originally posted by bigwads:
I was listening to the recordings on KNBR and I wanted to break my computer. There was a bunch of callers hammering Alex Smith again...as well as some of the commentators.

I simply don't get the "haters" at all. All I hear are comments about how the Niners won't go anywhere with Alex...ever. We will never make the playoffs without a "probowler" QB or a Hall-of-fame QB...this is the Niner way and nothing will never change.

The same remarks were made about Eli Manning until he won the superbowl. If the Giants would have lost that superbowl the same Eli haters would be calling up saying, "I don't care if he is a probowler" or "he just doesn't have any leadership ability."

I heard also about how the "excuses" surround Alex Smith and that's all he is...a bunch of excuses.

I am sick of this crap. The so called "excuses" that cloud Smith's career are not excuses...they are JUSTIFICATIONS...there is a big difference.

1. 6 OC's with different systems in 6 years...give me a freaking break
2. Playing with a torn shoulder...really? Is this an excuse...you haters are a joke
3. DROPPED BALLS DROPPED BALLS DROPPED BALLS!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! If his WR's would actually catch his balls we would have won the Indy, Houston and Seattle games...now how's that for an excuse. And, his comp. % would be around 65% with a rating of just under 100!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! Now that's just a fact.

I am sick of this conversation and I am sick of the haters out there with blinders on their eyes...wake up...the dude can play.

Next year I hope that our offense does the following to utilize our personnel and AS the best.

1. Rollouts
2. Power running game
3. bootleg play action that allows AS to run
4. Shotgun

NO 3,5,7 DROPS PLEASE...THIS IS WHAT A.S. DOESN'T DO WELL, SO STOP DOING IT. But the 4 things about are what A.S. does better than average.

What I'm sick of are the excuses...

Alex needs to let all that crap go and either show the public he can play or we need to move on. IMO, he's been doing a better job of that lately; but, he hasen't shown quite enough for us to say our QB problems are settled yet...

SMith has never made excuses and never got into a public relations battle. He had every right to attack Nolan for what he did to him a few years ago but didnt'. Smith is a class guy and deserves better than what some of us 9ers fans and the organization have put him through. If anything this organization has wasted a perfectly good 1st pick by changing OCs and offensive schemes every year. I'd like to know if that has ever happened before in the history of the NFL. Having your 1st pick QB get 5 OCs in 5 years and have to learn 3 offensive systems during that time.

Yup, those would be the excuses I'm talking about... It's time to stop with all that talk and evaluate if this kid has it or not. He's showing good things; but, hasn't answered all the questions yet.

I'm fine with that but you can't place him in a vacuum. His history is there. It has to be dealt with. Sure it would have been great if the team had better players in 06 and 07 and we actually had a consistent offensive philosophy but that didn't happen. Also, it would have been great if Smith didnt' get hurt in 07. But all of that stuff happened. Now Smith haters want to act like none of the bad crap happened and Smith is just a 5 year bust. That's of course not true cause he hasn't had many opportunties to succeed until now.

Again more of those excuses I was talking about.

It's true he has a History; but, so do you and so do I. Things in my past don't impact how I'm evaluated at work today or how I will be evaluated doing my job tomorrow. It's all about what I can do now that allows me to bring home a paycheck. With that said, it finally looks like Alex is starting to earn his.

I thought he was earning his in 2007. He improved a lot on a crappy team with only Gore as an offensive threat. His receivers weren't the best and the brighest to say the least. Still I'll agree that Smith has to sink or swim now. I think he has already done enough to come back next year as the starter entering training camp and the QB job is his to lose.

I also think we should keep developing Davis and I'm fine with bringing Hill or a better veteran QB in as backup.

Originally posted by taney71:

Originally posted by D_Niner:

Originally posted by taney71:

Originally posted by D_Niner:

Originally posted by taney71:

Originally posted by D_Niner:

Originally posted by bigwads:
I was listening to the recordings on KNBR and I wanted to break my computer. There was a bunch of callers hammering Alex Smith again...as well as some of the commentators.

I simply don't get the "haters" at all. All I hear are comments about how the Niners won't go anywhere with Alex...ever. We will never make the playoffs without a "probowler" QB or a Hall-of-fame QB...this is the Niner way and nothing will never change.

The same remarks were made about Eli Manning until he won the superbowl. If the Giants would have lost that superbowl the same Eli haters would be calling up saying, "I don't care if he is a probowler" or "he just doesn't have any leadership ability."

I heard also about how the "excuses" surround Alex Smith and that's all he is...a bunch of excuses.

I am sick of this crap. The so called "excuses" that cloud Smith's career are not excuses...they are JUSTIFICATIONS...there is a big difference.

1. 6 OC's with different systems in 6 years...give me a freaking break
2. Playing with a torn shoulder...really? Is this an excuse...you haters are a joke
3. DROPPED BALLS DROPPED BALLS DROPPED BALLS!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! If his WR's would actually catch his balls we would have won the Indy, Houston and Seattle games...now how's that for an excuse. And, his comp. % would be around 65% with a rating of just under 100!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! Now that's just a fact.

I am sick of this conversation and I am sick of the haters out there with blinders on their eyes...wake up...the dude can play.

Next year I hope that our offense does the following to utilize our personnel and AS the best.

1. Rollouts
2. Power running game
3. bootleg play action that allows AS to run
4. Shotgun

NO 3,5,7 DROPS PLEASE...THIS IS WHAT A.S. DOESN'T DO WELL, SO STOP DOING IT. But the 4 things about are what A.S. does better than average.

What I'm sick of are the excuses...

Alex needs to let all that crap go and either show the public he can play or we need to move on. IMO, he's been doing a better job of that lately; but, he hasen't shown quite enough for us to say our QB problems are settled yet...

SMith has never made excuses and never got into a public relations battle. He had every right to attack Nolan for what he did to him a few years ago but didnt'. Smith is a class guy and deserves better than what some of us 9ers fans and the organization have put him through. If anything this organization has wasted a perfectly good 1st pick by changing OCs and offensive schemes every year. I'd like to know if that has ever happened before in the history of the NFL. Having your 1st pick QB get 5 OCs in 5 years and have to learn 3 offensive systems during that time.

Yup, those would be the excuses I'm talking about... It's time to stop with all that talk and evaluate if this kid has it or not. He's showing good things; but, hasn't answered all the questions yet.

I'm fine with that but you can't place him in a vacuum. His history is there. It has to be dealt with. Sure it would have been great if the team had better players in 06 and 07 and we actually had a consistent offensive philosophy but that didn't happen. Also, it would have been great if Smith didnt' get hurt in 07. But all of that stuff happened. Now Smith haters want to act like none of the bad crap happened and Smith is just a 5 year bust. That's of course not true cause he hasn't had many opportunties to succeed until now.

Again more of those excuses I was talking about.

It's true he has a History; but, so do you and so do I. Things in my past don't impact how I'm evaluated at work today or how I will be evaluated doing my job tomorrow. It's all about what I can do now that allows me to bring home a paycheck. With that said, it finally looks like Alex is starting to earn his.

I thought he was earning his in 2007. He improved a lot on a crappy team with only Gore as an offensive threat. His receivers weren't the best and the brighest to say the least. Still I'll agree that Smith has to sink or swim now. I think he has already done enough to come back next year as the starter entering training camp and the QB job is his to lose.

I also think we should keep developing Davis and I'm fine with bringing Hill or a better veteran QB in as backup.

You mean 06 right? He did improve; but, in no way was he living up to his paycheck...

I agree with continuing to develop Davis and, depending on where he's at, bring in another rookie. If Davis is as good as Hill at the end of TC then ditch Hill and continue developing the rook and Davis...

Originally posted by D_Niner:

Originally posted by taney71:

Originally posted by D_Niner:

Originally posted by taney71:

Originally posted by D_Niner:

Originally posted by taney71:

Originally posted by D_Niner:

Originally posted by bigwads:
I was listening to the recordings on KNBR and I wanted to break my computer. There was a bunch of callers hammering Alex Smith again...as well as some of the commentators.

I simply don't get the "haters" at all. All I hear are comments about how the Niners won't go anywhere with Alex...ever. We will never make the playoffs without a "probowler" QB or a Hall-of-fame QB...this is the Niner way and nothing will never change.

The same remarks were made about Eli Manning until he won the superbowl. If the Giants would have lost that superbowl the same Eli haters would be calling up saying, "I don't care if he is a probowler" or "he just doesn't have any leadership ability."

I heard also about how the "excuses" surround Alex Smith and that's all he is...a bunch of excuses.

I am sick of this crap. The so called "excuses" that cloud Smith's career are not excuses...they are JUSTIFICATIONS...there is a big difference.

1. 6 OC's with different systems in 6 years...give me a freaking break
2. Playing with a torn shoulder...really? Is this an excuse...you haters are a joke
3. DROPPED BALLS DROPPED BALLS DROPPED BALLS!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! If his WR's would actually catch his balls we would have won the Indy, Houston and Seattle games...now how's that for an excuse. And, his comp. % would be around 65% with a rating of just under 100!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! Now that's just a fact.

I am sick of this conversation and I am sick of the haters out there with blinders on their eyes...wake up...the dude can play.

Next year I hope that our offense does the following to utilize our personnel and AS the best.

1. Rollouts
2. Power running game
3. bootleg play action that allows AS to run
4. Shotgun

NO 3,5,7 DROPS PLEASE...THIS IS WHAT A.S. DOESN'T DO WELL, SO STOP DOING IT. But the 4 things about are what A.S. does better than average.

What I'm sick of are the excuses...

Alex needs to let all that crap go and either show the public he can play or we need to move on. IMO, he's been doing a better job of that lately; but, he hasen't shown quite enough for us to say our QB problems are settled yet...

SMith has never made excuses and never got into a public relations battle. He had every right to attack Nolan for what he did to him a few years ago but didnt'. Smith is a class guy and deserves better than what some of us 9ers fans and the organization have put him through. If anything this organization has wasted a perfectly good 1st pick by changing OCs and offensive schemes every year. I'd like to know if that has ever happened before in the history of the NFL. Having your 1st pick QB get 5 OCs in 5 years and have to learn 3 offensive systems during that time.

Yup, those would be the excuses I'm talking about... It's time to stop with all that talk and evaluate if this kid has it or not. He's showing good things; but, hasn't answered all the questions yet.

I'm fine with that but you can't place him in a vacuum. His history is there. It has to be dealt with. Sure it would have been great if the team had better players in 06 and 07 and we actually had a consistent offensive philosophy but that didn't happen. Also, it would have been great if Smith didnt' get hurt in 07. But all of that stuff happened. Now Smith haters want to act like none of the bad crap happened and Smith is just a 5 year bust. That's of course not true cause he hasn't had many opportunties to succeed until now.

Again more of those excuses I was talking about.

It's true he has a History; but, so do you and so do I. Things in my past don't impact how I'm evaluated at work today or how I will be evaluated doing my job tomorrow. It's all about what I can do now that allows me to bring home a paycheck. With that said, it finally looks like Alex is starting to earn his.

I thought he was earning his in 2007. He improved a lot on a crappy team with only Gore as an offensive threat. His receivers weren't the best and the brighest to say the least. Still I'll agree that Smith has to sink or swim now. I think he has already done enough to come back next year as the starter entering training camp and the QB job is his to lose.

I also think we should keep developing Davis and I'm fine with bringing Hill or a better veteran QB in as backup.

You mean 06 right? He did improve; but, in no way was he living up to his paycheck...

I agree with continuing to develop Davis and, depending on where he's at, bring in another rookie. If Davis is as good as Hill at the end of TC then ditch Hill and continue developing the rook and Davis...

Yeah, his second year I meant. I'm not for giving Davis the backup duties out of training camp. It's hard to measure how good he is based on preseason especially if he is still going up against guys that will be delivering pizzas in Week 1. Now if the 9ers actually allow Davis to play in the 1st half in preseason games 1 or 2 where he is going up against starters or backups then I think that is a different story.

As for drafting a QB, I'm against it if we are talking about using our top picks. We need to fill needs at other positions first. Now if a great QB falls to us in the 2nd round or something then sure but otherwise I don't want to see the 9ers forcing the issue.

[ Edited by taney71 on Dec 16, 2009 at 13:31:29 ]

Originally posted by SanDiego49er:

Originally posted by kem99:
The funny thing is if Hill had done the exact same thing on Monday, he would be praised for being a "winner" and the stats wouldn't matter.Smith has now played in 7.5 games, if we extrapolate that out he would be looking at about 3,400 yards, 61% Completion percentage, 30 TDs and 18 INTS. The TD/INT ratio could be better, as could the yards/attempt but not too bad considering he had not played in 2 years, didn't get any snaps in practice running the 49er plays for 6 weeks, Crabtree signed late, etc.

With all that said, while this year revived his career, next year will be the biggest of his NFL life. He'll go into the offseason as the starting QB, get a 2nd year in the same system and with the same OC, get the majority of the snaps in the workouts, etc. It should all be there for him to either succeed and become at least a top 10-15 QB or prove that he's okay but not likely to lead a team deep into the playoffs.

Wow. Is that right? Over 3,000 yards and 30 TDs? That's a really good season.

~ Defense plays well.

~ RB plays well.

~ 49ers win.

Hill would be called a "winner" for this. LOL. Quite a double standard.

Either the coaches don't trust him enough or they're not playing to all his strengths, I don't know. I'm still in ah, why they don't roll Smith out, which was one of his strengths when Norv Turner was here. I think Smith will be fine in the end, but he really needs a break out game soon and this Sunday is his best opportunity. If we have any chance of winning and keeping our play-off hopes alive Smith needs to show that he's not just good enough but able to carry this team on his back. This Sunday will be a huge test for Smith.

The bottom line is: quarterbacks will always be judged by wins, and even if we throw out 2007 when he was injured, Alex has never had a winning record. Now if the team wins out, he'll finish 6-4.
But to your point, win or lose there HAS been progress. He is clearly no longer looking overwhelmed. The most obvious sign of this is the "dump off" pass. In his first three years he couldn't make that throw with linemen in his face: they were at the receiver's feet or out of bounds--he just looked panicked. But this year, he is keeping his cool and making the play.
In my mind, with a promising guy behind him being brought along slowly in Nate Davis, I wouldn't spend those two first round picks on a QB, whatever happens with Alex this year. Improve the o-line and add a speedy runner who can stretch the defense out to the sidelines and be a receiving threat, and we'll really see where we are!