Alex Smith to resume Football Activities-Dwayne Haskins hears his footsteps
Dwayne Haskins will inevitably be replaced by Alex Smith.
Alex Smith has been cleared to resume football activities with the newly named “Washington football team”. This can only mean one thing, a Quarterback controversy in the nation's capital. Quarterback controversies are music to media, sportswriters, and blogger's ears. It becomes an interesting story-line to follow for fans alike and is tagged as a dramatic soap opera or reality television. Everyone likes a good reality television show though.
There isn’t anything interesting or thrilling about this scenario for Haskins though. Fans are already unsure of Haskins’ leadership abilities or lack thereof. When a three-time Pro-Bowl veteran and proven Quarterback like Alex Smith comes back, that puts a lot of pressure on the former highly touted first-rounder Haskins. Add to that, Haskins has a new head coach and a new system to learn, and the advantage could go to Smith in training camp.
Another notch in Smith’s noggin is that Haskins isn’t Ron Rivera’s “guy”. Ron Rivera didn’t draft him so he’s not tied to Haskins's success or lack thereof. Especially since Haskins hasn’t established himself as a potential future Franchise Quarterback like his draft mates, Daniel Jones, and Kyler Murray did. Rivera doesn’t owe Haskins anything, and overall his sentiments toward his new Quarterback have been non-committal. What this suggests is that Rivera wants his guy and is not sold on Haskins. It also didn’t help that Washington and Rivera signed Quarterback Kyle Allen from the Panthers, who played in Rivera’s system.
Rivera is a defensive-minded head coach and he hired Jack Del Rio, a former head coach in his own right, to run his defense. Both would like a Quarterback that doesn’t turn the ball over and is very accurate and will run the system as they ask. Sound familiar Alex Smith? Yeah sorry, Haskins but this team and coaching staff isn’t built for you to succeed.
Smith fits the game manager, takes care of the ball system that suits Rivera’s coaching style and defense, better. Washington has drafted well on defense over the years and has some really good pieces on that side of the ball. They’re just looking for the right Coach and Quarterback to complement the pieces on defense. So what did Washington do? Hire not one, but two former Defensive minded head coaches. They also went with arguably the best prospect in the entire 2020 NFL Draft, Chase Young, a relentless edge rusher.
Now they have a gift wrapped up and falling in their lap that is Alex Smith, who would fit what this team wants to do perfectly, and you think Ron Rivera and his coaching staff are going to pass that up for Dwayne Haskins? I don’t think so. Former coach Jay Gruden didn’t even want to Draft Haskins, and there is a reason why Haskins fell the way he did in the 2019 NFL Draft. He showed us that in his rookie season.
If Alex Smith is fully cleared to play week one and Washington seriously makes it an open competition for the starting job, all the variables and advantages point to Alex Smith, and Haskins has no shot. They are opposites. One is a gunslinger, and the other is a mobile accurate passer that takes great care of the football, the other doesn’t take good care of the football.
Based on the profiles of Ron Rivera, and Jack Del Rio, it's not hard to tell who they want, and who would fit their play style best. That man unfortunately isn’t Haskins. So what do Washington and Rivera do now? Do they trade Haskins while he still has some value, or do they red-shirt him one year to learn behind Smith? If I were Washington I would showcase him during the preseason and then try to trade him.
Another thing for Washington to consider is contracts. Either way, you look at it, Washington will have a high-profile backup on the bench. Alex Smith has a huge 4 year $94 million contract with Washington and it wouldn’t make sense to have that kind of money sitting on the bench. That money and investment should be put on the field as it was intended to when they initially signed him.
On the other hand, having Haskins sit on the bench without trading him, would be a waste of money, and would mean that Washington admits that he was a Draft blunder. Washington has him on a rookie team-friendly deal for another 3 years. Having him sit on the bench when you should be trying to figure out if he’s your future, would just prove or should I say “confirm” that Rivera and Washington don’t believe in their former first-rounder. If that’s the case it’s time to think about trading him.
All signs point to Alex Smith more than likely being the opening day starter for the 2020 NFL Season. He has a huge contract, he’s the better Quarterback right now, he is less trade-able because of his age and contract than a young Haskins, and most importantly he fits what Washington and the new coaching staff are trying to do. Smith’s forte of not turning the ball over is a welcome work of art and music to Ron Rivera’s ears.
Smith hasn’t had double-digit interceptions in nine straight seasons. A healthy Alex Smith is the best and worst thing that can happen for Washington. The best because he fits their system best. The worst because now they have a Quarterback controversy and will have to decide quickly what they will have to do with Haskins when they inevitably do go with Smith as their guy moving forward.
So look out Dwayne Haskins because the footsteps of Alex Smith’s seven-step drop can be heard throughout the cities of the NFC East, he’s coming!
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