Ron Jaworski Ranks Alex Smith in Top Half of NFL Quarterbacks

Ron Jaworski (or Jaws as he’s often referred to as) has the majority of his rankings out for his annual quarterback countdown.

He has Kansas City Chiefs quarterback Alex Smith at 14th.

Say what you will about KC Chiefs quarterback Alex Smith, but Ron Jaworski considers him to be in the top half of the current starting quarterbacks in the NFL headed into 2015. Here was the transcribed analysis from Jaws’ countdown and what he had to say about Smith, courtesy of ESPN MediaZone,

"How about these numbers for Alex Smith the last two seasons in Kansas City? Forty-one touchdown passes and only 13 interceptions. Smith is not aggressive throwing the ball down the field, but he does not turn it over. It’s a fine line. Smith had the fewest attempts of any NFL quarterback on throws 20 or more yards from the line of scrimmage. But he was very efficient in the red zone. Thirteen touchdowns, no picks. I want to get back to Smith’s 24 attempts all season beyond 20 yards. He only completed eight. It’s where his arm strength limitations do show up. And that’s not going to change at this point in his career."

Ahhh, the limitations of throwing downfield. It’s what all Chiefs fans dislike the most about Smith. Fans seem to want a quarterback who takes risks and tries to get the ball down the field. I agree on some level, but it’s also nice having a quarterback who doesn’t throw a lot of interceptions.

Since coming to the Kansas City Chiefs during the 2013 offseason, Smith has gone an impressive 19-11 in two seasons.

He hasn’t always been a perfect quarterback, in fact, no one would say he’s been anywhere close to perfect, but Smith is the type of quarterback that doesn’t lose you games.

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While it would be nice to see him take risks down the field, is it worth getting the ball picked off? I certainly don’t think so.

When Smith was pressured to throw the ball long distances in the game against Tennessee last season, we all saw what happened – Smith threw three interceptions and looked dreadful.

Look, I get it. It’s annoying that Smith has limitations down the field and that guys like Peyton Manning and Philip Rivers can air it out all day, but that’s their game. Smith isn’t that type of quarterback.

With an offense like the Chiefs’ in 2015, Smith has no excuse not to perform well this season. He now has Jeremy Maclin to throw to along with his returning tight end Travis Kelce. He also has Jamaal Charles to hand the ball off to and a (hopefully) improved offensive line.

If Alex Smith can’t get the Chiefs to the promise land this year (by that I mean a second round playoff game… after winning one for the first time in over 20 years), then even I won’t have anymore excuses for the former first overall pick.

These Ron Jaworski quarterback rankings indicate there are several signal callers in the NFL that are worse than Alex Smith. Heck, just compare him to the stiffs the KC Chiefs used at the position since Trent Green was the quarterback.

Now that the wide receiver corp looks to be improved, we shall see just how good Alex Smith can be.

We’re counting on you Alex. Don’t let us down.

Next: Top 5 Quarterbacks in Chiefs History

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