Kansas City Chiefs: Alex Smith is a clear Pro Bowl snub

The NFL announced the initial 2018 Pro Bowl roster, and one name was clearly missing. Kansas City Chiefs quarterback Alex Smith is the biggest snub of 2018.

Every year there is at least one clear snub in the Pro Bowl selection process. For 2018 there is no doubt that Kansas City Chiefs quarterback Alex Smith is that snub. Smith has been very good this season, in fact one of the best in the league. He is having a career year and deserved to be selected to the Pro Bowl.

Of course, that’s not really how this process works. The NFL utilizes fan voting to an almost obscene degree to determine who gets into the Pro Bowl. That means players don’t necessarily get in based on the merits of that one season. Instead, name recognition and reputation can end up having a major effect.

That isn’t to say that there weren’t other deserving players for the Pro Bowl. There was no doubt that Tom Brady and Ben Roethlisberger were going to get invitations to play in Orlando this year. Both quarterbacks have been having phenomenal seasons. However, that third spot definitely belonged to Alex Smith.

Alex Smith > Philip Rivers

Yes, I am absolutely going to take exception to Philip Rivers getting in over Alex Smith. The Kansas City Chiefs quarterback was clearly more deserving this season in my eyes. There simply is not an objective measure by which Rivers deserved this more than Smith.

Alex Smith has the edge on Philip Rivers in completion percentage, yards per attempt, touchdowns, interceptions thrown, passer rating, and team success. Rivers only has the edge in yards, and that by only 100 yards. Smith has even looked better in both of their head to head match-ups this year.

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You simply cannot make an argument where Philip Rivers is more deserving of a Pro Bowl selection this year than Alex Smith is. This is a clear failure in the selection process. Fan voting is simply to subjective to be relied upon so heavily.

Alternate…Or Maybe Not

Alex Smith will certainly be the top alternate quarterback for the AFC. He has been way too good for the Kansas City Chiefs this year. With the Patriots and Steelers the odds on favorites to go to the Super Bowl, it is very likely that Smith will get the call to replace Tom Brady or Ben Roethlisberger in Orlando.

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Then again…that’s all assuming that Alex Smith and the Kansas City Chiefs won’t be the ones playing in the Super Bowl this year. That is hardly a safe assumption right now, especially with the way that Smith is playing. So any talk of being an alternate could be all for naught. I’m sure Chiefs Kingdom, and Smith himself, would have no problem with that.

Of course, most people believe that the Pro Bowl is worthless anyways. Personally, I believe that clear omissions like Alex Smith completely validate that viewpoint. Whether you love, hate, or simply properly value Smith, it is clear that he deserved to be in the Pro Bowl over Philip Rivers.

Alex Smith is your biggest Pro Bowl snub of 2018.

The Kansas City Chiefs didn’t get huge representation in the 2018 Pro Bowl. You can argue that there were a few snubs from the Chiefs roster this year. However, it is clear that Alex Smith is the biggest snub of the bunch. The NFL definitely got this one wrong.