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Washington Football Team Releases Comeback Player of the Year Quarterback Alex Smith
Introduction
On Friday, March 5th, 2021 the Washington Football Team decided to release their veteran quarterback, Alex Smith, who had overcome the most extreme and difficult situation imaginable in order to return to playing professional football once again for the Washington Football Team. For his hard work and dedication to the game Smith was presented the 2020 – 2021 NFL Comeback Player of the Year award. Alex also helped the Washington Football Team win the NFC East title to make an appearance in the 2020 – 2021 NFL postseason.
The decision for the Washington Football Team to release Smith was based on him turning 37 – years – old this May, and his contract will count $24.4 million against the team’s salary cap. By releasing Alex, the Washington Football Team will save $14.9 million against the salary cap which makes him quite easily expendable.
Quarterback Situation
According to the Washington Football Team’s depth chart at the quarterback position, at the moment they have Taylor Heinicke listed as their starting quarterback, followed by Kyle Allen as their second string QB, and Steven Montez is listed as their third string quarterback.
Heinicke’s contract was just recently extended to a 2 – year deal including incentives that place a value of $8.75 million on the new agreement. Kyle Allen is currently an exclusive rights free agent, and Allen is expected to work out a new deal with the Washington Football Team sometime prior to the 2021 – 2022 NFL season. Montez was signed by the Washington Football Team as undrafted free agent last offseason. Smith’s hard work and courage was greatly appreciated by Washington, but unfortunately, they had to move in a different direction at this point in time. Hopefully Alex can find another NFL franchise to pick him up now as he is an unrestricted free agent assuming that he still wants to play football in the NFL and not retire.
Smith’s Gruesome Injury
Smith endured a devastating compound fracture on his right leg while playing against the Houston Texans on November 18th, 2018. The Washington Redskins ended up losing that game, but that was the least of his concerns moving forward. The star quarterback had to undergo approximately 17 surgeries after the massive injury due to multiple infections from the wound. At one point there was a possibility that his leg may need to be amputated due to the medical complications that he went through.
The Rehabilitation Process
Smith’s rehab was intense as most professional athletes have to go through this after a major injury suffered while doing their job. He told the media how, not only was it tough to get through all the physical elements of the rehabilitation, but the mental hurdles that he must overcome seemed insurmountable at times. He used the day – by – day approach to try to work through those as he dreamed of playing football in the NFL once again.
Smith wore an external fixator while allowing for his right leg to fully recover. He credits this device for greatly helping and benefiting him through his rehab developments. He was keeping up with his throwing during the rehabilitation process, and that was never a problem for him even with the busted leg.
He explained that running was the hardest part, and that he had to learn to run again post surgeries. He had problems dropping back into a passing position, and obviously making cuts on the leg was extremely difficult for him at that time. He didn’t quite trust his leg to respond the way it should and that was tough on him both mentally and physically, but he worked hard and miraculously was able to return to NFL game action during the 2020 – 2021 NFL season.
Alex Smith’s Career Achievements, Honors, and Awards
- NFL Comeback Player of the Year (2020)
- 3 Time NFL Pro Bowl Selection (2013, 2016, 2017)
- NFL Passer Rating Leader (2017)
- First – Team All – American (2004)
- MWC Offensive Player of the Year (2004)
Odds to Win Super Bowl LVI
According to Intertops sportsbook these are the odds to win Super Bowl LVI as of Saturday, March 6th, 2021.
| Team Odds |
|---|
| Kansas City Chiefs +450 |
| Green Bay Packers +850 |
| Tampa Bay Buccaneers +850 |
| Buffalo Bills +1100 |
| Los Angeles Rams +1200 |
| San Francisco 49ers +1400 |
| Baltimore Ravens +1600 |
| New Orleans Saints +2000 |
| Indianapolis Colts +2000 |
| Cleveland Browns +2000 |
| Seattle Seahawks +2000 |
| Miami Dolphins +2500 |
| Los Angeles Chargers +2800 |
| Dallas Cowboys +2800 |
| Tennessee Titans +2800 |
| Pittsburgh Steelers +3300 |
| Arizona Cardinals +3300 |
| New England Patriots +4000 |
| Minnesota Vikings +5000 |
| Atlanta Falcons +5000 |
| Carolina Panthers +5000 |
| Denver Broncos +5000 |
| Chicago Bears +6600 |
| New York Giants +6600 |
| Las Vegas Raiders +6600 |
| Washington Football Team +6600 |
| Philadelphia Eagles +8000 |
| New York Jets +8000 |
| Jacksonville Jaguars +10000 |
| Cincinnati Bengals +10000 |
| Houston Texans +15000 |
| Detroit Lions +15000 |
Sources:
“Washington Football Team releases quarterback Alex Smith”, John Keim, espn.com, March 5, 2021.
“QB Smith: Big step will be learning to run again”, John Keim, espn.com, June 21, 2019.
“United States, NFL Futures, NFL 2021 / 22 Super Bowl LVI: To Win Outright”, intertops.eu, March 6, 2021.
“Alex Smith”, pro-football-reference.com, March 6, 2021.