Alex Smith Set to be Dealt to Kansas City

Original Photo by Associated Press

Alex Smith's tenure in San Francisco is set to end when the new NFL year begins on March 12. 

The former No. 1 Overall Pick in the 2005 NFL Draft is set to be traded to the Kansas City Chiefs, Jay Glazer of FOX Sports reported about an hour ago. Mike Freeman, writer for CBS Sports, would later confirm the deal was in place. Tim Kawakami, writer for the San Jose Mercury News provides the framework of the deal, which has Kansas City sending San Francisco the No. 34 pick in this year's draft (2nd rounder) and a similar pick for the 2014 NFL Draft. 

The deal effectively ends a whirlwind tenure for Smith as a 49er. Smith went through a turnstile of offensive coordinators, injuries, and a love/hate relationship with the fans of the San Francisco 49ers. Much maligned for his play prior to the Jim Harbaugh era, Smith won the fans' hearts when he took them to the NFC Championship Game in the 2011-12 season. 

Last season, Smith was nearly the most efficient QB in the league, but fell short o the minimum pass attempt mark, and was supplanted by Colin Kaepernick, who led the 49ers to the Super Bowl. This would ultimately be his undoing, along with a concussion that took him out of a game against the St. Louis Rams. That game ended in a tie, but also was the beginning of Colin's starting stint with San Francisco, leaving Smith along the sidelines.

Kansas City is no stranger to former San Francisco quarterbacks. They have housed Elvis Grbac, Steve Bono, Steve DeBerg and also Joe Montana, who led the Chiefs to the 1993 AFC Championship Game. The Chiefs are coming off of a disastrous 2-14 season, and ultimately, current starting quarterback Matt Cassel is expected to be released sooner rather than later.

The Chiefs, despite their record, do possess some talent on their team, and let's not forget that they do have a new head coach in Andy Reid and a new general manager in John Dorsey. 

We also cannot forget that the Chiefs play in a beleaguered AFC West division, will play the AFC South this season, as well as Cleveland and Buffalo, their fellow cellar dwellers. They will also be playing the NFC East, which depending on certain factors (RGIII's injury, and whether or not the Giants and Cowboys improve, as well as the lowly Eagles), could be easier than expected. 

So in my opinion I think this deal makes a lot of sense for both sides. Kansas City absolutely needed a quarterback, and clearly, with the indication that they are most likely getting rid of their high second round pick to San Francisco, they do not value a quarterback being taken with the No. 1 overall pick or the No. 34 overall pick either. Smith has revitalized himself and even though he is leaving Jim Harbaugh, I think that Andy Reid is a good safety blanket to land on with his experience with quarterbacks. He isn't Nick Foles or Michael Vick and I think he can find some successes in Kansas City. 

Meanwhile for San Francisco, they had to end this tenure with Smith to firmly secure the Colin Kaepernick tenure. It seemed obvious that they were going to go this route, but this truly supplants Kaepernick as the guy for the 49ers. They are also stockpiling in draft picks which could either give them leverage in a trade for some of the big names on the market, such as Percy Harvin, Darrelle Revis or Victor Cruz, or could instead be used to pick up some young talent in the draft.