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Alex Smith trade results are in: Did 49ers or Chiefs get the better haul?

The results of the Alex Smith trade are now in. Did the Kansas City Chiefs or San Francisco 49ers come out better?

Peter Aiken

The Kansas City Chiefs sent two second round picks to the San Francisco 49ers in exchange for Alex Smith last offseason. The 49ers turned those two second round picks into five total picks through the draft day dealings in the 2013 and 2014 NFL Draft.

Peter King of SI.com rounded up what each team got out of the trade. The result:

Chiefs get

QB Alex Smith

49ers get

DL Tank Carradine (second round, 2013)
LB Corey Lemonier (third round, 2013) 
LB Chris Borland (third round, 2014)
RB Carlos Hyde (second round, 2014)
WR Stevie Johnson (acquired for 2015 fourth-rounder)

Here is the explanation behind which pick went where. The 49ers did some wheeling and dealing to improve their picks. That's what happens when you have a strong roster and aren't pigeon-holed into making a pick right now.

Quarterbacks trump everything in the NFL. If Smith puts in multiple years of high-level play then this trade will be worth it. It's kind of like the RGIII trade. The Rams got a host of picks out of that but no quarterback. If RGIII turns out to be a star, the Redskins still come out looking good.

So, who won the Alex Smith trade?*

*Yes, we won't know for a few years who actually won the trade but that doesn't make for a very fun blog post the Monday after the draft.

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