Joe Robbins
The Kansas City Chiefs did it. They made a trade with the San Francisco 49ers for Alex Smith, one that will reportedly cost them a second round pick in the 2013 NFL Draft and a conditional third round pick in 2014. Our Alex Smith trade approval poll is split fairly evenly right now but plenty of people had strong opinions on the trade, and many of those strong opinions involved comparing Matt Cassel and Alex Smith. Whether it was those defending the trade for Smith or those attacking it, the comparisons were .... entertaining. Check it out below.
Are we sure that Alex Smith is a significant upgrade from Matt Cassel?
— Eric Stoner (@ECStoner) February 25, 2013
Good Christ. Cassel and Smith have identical Total QBR scores over the past five years. es.pn/WjwqXX
— Clay W (@bfett81) February 27, 2013
ESPN: Smith's unofficial trade from San Francisco to Kansas City invited comparisons between Smith and recent Chiefs starting quarterback Matt Cassel. Smith was much better than Cassel during the 2012 season. He has much better traditional passing stats over the past two seasons. But as the chart shows, Cassel and Smith have identical Total QBR scores over the past five years. They were at 46.6. All starting quarterbacks were at 53.0 over that period. Cassel was slightly ahead of Smith, 46.4 to 45.8, when only starts were considered.
Reports say #Chiefs gave up 2nd RD pick this year (2013) & similar pick in 2014 for Alex Smith. Chiefs gave up similar pic for Cassel in 09
— Craig A. Brenner (@craig_a_brenner) February 27, 2013
John Rieger-USA TODAY Sports
Think Alex Smith fumbles less than Matt Cassel? Not much. Smith fumbles every 49.5 attempts. Cassel 49.9 attempts.
— Christopher Hansen (@ChrisHansenNFL) February 27, 2013
Y'all realize that Cassel's 2008 and 2010 seasons are better than anything Alex Smith has ever put out, right?
— Eric Stoner (@ECStoner) February 25, 2013
Remember a couple days ago when I was talking about how Cassel=Alex Smith. Welp. h/t @fbgchase pro-football-reference.com/play-index/psl…
— Eric Stoner (@ECStoner) February 27, 2013
Alex Smith is not Matt Cassel. You clearly aren't watching tape if you say that.
— Nick Jacobs (@Jacobs71) February 26, 2013
Biggest difference between Alex Smith & Matt Cassel is that Smith doesn't fold like an accordion when pressured.
— Chiefs_All_Day (@Chiefs_All_Day) February 26, 2013
To compare Alex Smith's % of deep throws, well...it's basically identical to Cassel in 2010. 1 pass over 20 yards every 10 or 11 attempts.
— Clay W (@bfett81) February 25, 2013
If you say Alex Smith is Matt Cassel because of career stats, I'd assume you think Geno Smith & Colt McCoy are similar too. #MoreThanStats
— BJ Kissel (@bkissel7) February 25, 2013
Denny Medley-USA TODAY Sports
IOW, Matt Cassel 2.0. RT @bmkcmo: Read up on Alex Smith. Kid is tough and has battled thru tough times. Also has great leadership skills.
— Chiefs Nation (@Chiefs__Nation) February 25, 2013
@chiefsbeef I'd rather have Geno Smith and Matt Hasselbeck than trade draft picks for Cassel 2.0
— Johnny Coltrane (@Chief_Wildcat) February 25, 2013
I shouldn't be as excited for a potential trade of Alex Smith as I am. Thanks for lowering the bar Matt Cassel.
— Jason Anderson (@J680Anderson) February 25, 2013
That's what I'm saying. RT @joegoodberry: Matt Cassel could be Alex Smith if he was on the 49ers.
— Eric Stoner (@ECStoner) February 25, 2013
Matt Cassel has been hurt and bad these last two years, but his best season (2010) was better than Alex Smith's (2011). KC will be fun 2013.
— USSDU - NFL (@USSDU_NFL) February 27, 2013
@cravenmorhead Cassel had 96 passes over 10 yards...Smith 46.
— TheFilmRoom (@TheFilmRoom) February 27, 2013
Still haven't found anything other than "wins" that indicates Alex Smith is better than Matt Cassel. #Chiefs
— RyFo18 (@RyFo18) February 27, 2013
Can't wait for #Chiefs training camp.Gonna get Alex Smith to sign my Matt Cassel jersey.
— SmugDingus (@SmugDingus) February 27, 2013
So the same franchise that traded a 2nd for Cassel just traded a 2nd for Alex Smith? Einstein was right, the Chiefs are stupid...
— Dawgs By Nature (@DawgsByNature) February 27, 2013
Doug Pensinger Getty Images Sport
The Alex Smith trade reminds me of the Matt Cassel trade the #Chiefs made a few years ago. Both the Pats and #49ers had an extra QB to deal
— Jarred Belman (@JarredBelman) February 27, 2013
"Smith's strong numbers in 2012 reflected his abilities on early downs. His third-down Total QBR (33.1) trailed Cassel's (44.5)."
— Clay W (@bfett81) February 27, 2013
I just puked on myself... Alex Smith is the exact same QB as Matt Cassel. Here comes 4 more years of mediocrity. #Chiefs #49ers #NFL
— Travis Pflanz (@TravisPflanz) February 27, 2013
Unfortunately for Alex Smith, it seems like Kansas City is where quarterbacks go to begin there decline. Just ask Matt Cassel #toobad
— jonathan ruterbories (@Rutabaga67) February 27, 2013
More coverage:
The trade: 2nd round in 2013, 3rd round in 2013
"Alex Smith will be a tone-setter for the new Chiefs"
Everything we know about the Alex Smith trade
There are 781 Comments. Load Now.
Shortcuts to mastering the comment thread. Use wisely.
C - Next Comment
X - Mark as Read
R - Reply
Z - Mark Read & Next
Shift + C - Previous
Shift + A - Mark All Read
Comment Settings
Live comment alert: Hide it!
Comments for this post are closed.