Kansas City Chiefs: Way too early for Alex Smith trade talk
By Ben Almquist
The Kansas City Chiefs quarterback situation is a unique one. With all the hype and hope around Patrick Mahomes, many are jumping the gun when it comes to talking about trading Alex Smith.
It is understandable that Kansas City Chiefs fans are excited about the future at quarterback. The drafting of Patrick Mahomes has just about everyone in Chiefs Kingdom all worked up. For the most part, people are accepting that the rookie will sit while Alex Smith starts in 2017. However, that isn’t stopping people from already talking about trading the veteran.
Fans are impatient when it comes to high-profile players. We want to see them excel, and we want to see it now! That’s especially true of an exciting college gun-slinger that was hand-picked by a quarterback guru and a top NFL executive, both with a history of good quarterback decisions.
Add to the mix a lot of hype from folks like Mel Kiper, Todd McShay, and Jon Gruden…well, you just can’t stop that hype train. On top of that, you have Andy Benoit saying Mahomes must get on the field to learn, and Peter King saying he expects the rookie to start a few games. It’s just too much to ignore.
We’re Looking Ahead
However, the Chiefs have been steadfast in their handling of the situation. The KC leadership has repeatedly stated that Alex Smith is the starter for 2017. In fact, Patrick Mahomes has yet to even earn the top backup spot yet.
Talked #Chiefs with @MattConnerAA on 810, and he brought up a great point: Alex Smith will have value in 2018. https://t.co/rJSK8vt1Zq
— Joshua Brisco (@jbbrisco) May 21, 2017
Many fans understand that…so they are simply jumping ahead to 2018 and getting worked up for that season. The first step in their minds? Moving on from Alex Smith. That concept has gotten a lot of talk going. At the top of the list is seeing how much the Chiefs could get in a trade for the veteran quarterback.
Unfortunately, it’s not a cut and dry situation. There are a number of factors that play into this. The Chiefs need things to work out a certain way just to be able to entertain the idea of trading Smith. It is impossible to know what would happen in any kind of trade until the 2017 season is close to being over.
Here are just some of the major factors that come into play…