kcchief4lif 910 Posted October 23, 2015 Share Posted October 23, 2015 Kansas City faithful want a divorce from their struggling signal-caller. But that signal-caller has a contract that doesn’t get (ahem) ‘team-friendly’ until AFTER next fall. Look we get it, we get it: You want a divorce. Now. Yesterday, if possible. You saw the wounded duck that left Alex Smith’s arm in the Twin Cities during a fourth-quarter comeback that fell short. And speaking of falling short, there was No. 11’s next offering. Mercy. It may not seem conceivable, cruel even, for Kansas City Chiefs fans to get hammered with any more undesirable news at the moment. Not after 1-5 and a campaign that looks completely off the rails. Not after a freak injury ended Jamaal Charles’ season before he could try and save it. Not after Jeremy Maclin, the club’s only front-line veteran wide receiver, stuck in limbo as he recovers from a concussion. Well, here’s some gruel to go with the cruel, baby: $7.1 million. As in, that’s the cap hit the Chiefs would take by cutting Smith in 2016. At least according to the fun little calculator provided by the folks over at OverTheCap.com, who list the dead money owed to the Chiefs’ quarterback at staggering $24.9 million as of next year. (Current dead money: an even more staggering $40.4 million.) “Dead money,” in layman’s terms, is money from a player’s contract that continues to count against a team’s salary cap after said player is no longer on the roster. It’s not just a barometer of a particular team’s investment — it’s a benchmark of just how hard it could be to excise that player (and contract) immediately from the program. The Chiefs have three players who are projected to account for more than $10 million in dead money in 2016, if cut: Smith, outside linebacker Justin Houston ($16.4 million) and wideout Jeremy Maclin ($19.35 million). In a salary-cap universe, long-term, big-money investments are precious. And, for better or worse, those are the three horses general manager John Dorsey has hitched his wagon to for at least the next 15 months. A June 1 cut of the Chiefs’ signal-caller would actually add $100,000 to the 2016 cap but still would leave $17.7 million in dead money. To put it another way: In the short term, you’re stuck with him, kids. So, yes, you could draft his replacement next spring. But instead of the wanderlust for, say, current Cal quarterback Jared Goff — a tall, smart California kid (not unlike Smith) whose college stats aren’t exactly hurt by playing in a Mike Leach-style passing system — maybe the Chiefs should invest a first round pick next spring by upgrading the toys Smith is going to be able to play with. Such as, say, left tackle. Or a valid No. 2 receiver. Or insurance/cover for either Charles or tight end Travis Kelce. If the first six weeks have proven anything, it’s that No. 11 needs the help. And that the shopping list has rarely been longer. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
eraser 722 Posted October 23, 2015 Share Posted October 23, 2015 The Chiefs could part company with Alex Smith next year, but they probably will not. As you correctly stated, cutting him in 2015 or 2016 would negatively impact their cap number. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
liquidfriend 1,151 Posted October 23, 2015 Share Posted October 23, 2015 Yeah they aren't punting him next year. He will captain checkdown one more year while his replacement is groomed. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
eraser 722 Posted October 23, 2015 Share Posted October 23, 2015 The Chiefs could / should focus on their OL. Players can be found deep in the draft, but a good LT is usually found early in the first round. There are exceptions. Jason Peters was a undrafted free agent. There are a few who were 3rd or 2nd rounders. Most of the those who were not first round picks took a few years playing in the NFL to make it to the top level. If the Chiefs want a top LT they will have to draft one high. They can eventually develop a LT, but it may take a few years. Often enough, the teams that originally draft these guys trade them away before they become special. So, again, if they want to find a LT who is ready to start in year one, it will probably be a first round player. Conklin, Stanley, and Tunsil are the top players, and will go in the top 15 picks. Le'Raven Clark may end up being the best player for the Chiefs, but also may play his way up to the top fifteen players in the draft. Johnstone and Hawkins are two others to keep an eye on. I actually like the LTs in the 2016 draft. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
oldtimer 8,686 Posted October 23, 2015 Share Posted October 23, 2015 If the Chiefs have not found a replacement for Alex after this year..I wont care because I wont be watching the stupid SOB's. I dont really care what shedding him costs Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
wilkie 1,518 Posted October 23, 2015 Share Posted October 23, 2015 If the Chiefs have not found a replacement for Alex after this year..I wont care because I wont be watching the stupid SOB's. I dont really care what shedding him costs Yes you will. You cannot stay away. Too much a part of your life Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
kcchief4lif 910 Posted October 23, 2015 Author Share Posted October 23, 2015 I guess in the end would it really matter if they cut him? I mean Chase, murray, or Bray's salary along with Smith's dead money, would probably equal or be less than the cost of what they would pay alex to play. So for a year. They could have similar production, from a younger QB, that may have more upside, for the same price as alex being here. P.S. Or the soon to be drafted QB... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
PhataLerror 370 Posted October 23, 2015 Share Posted October 23, 2015 I'm still at a loss as to why anyone could think the Chiefs would have success with Daniel or Murray with things as they are on offense. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
KCSLC2008 606 Posted October 23, 2015 Share Posted October 23, 2015 I'm still at a loss as to why anyone could think the Chiefs would have success with Daniel or Murray with things as they are on offense. They don't, they just don't think Smith will. And the difference between Smith failing and them, if so happened would both lead to missing the playoffs. Murray's learning curve and 2016 draft status is an issue. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
kcchief4lif 910 Posted October 23, 2015 Author Share Posted October 23, 2015 I'm still at a loss as to why anyone could think the Chiefs would have success with Daniel or Murray with things as they are on offense. So again you say if smith had the things around him.. If it's gonna take soo much to make it a success, and from the looks of it, possibly 2 or more seasons. Why spin your wheels on him? Why not go to the next guy who may actually grow?? That's my take on it.. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
azchief21 5,278 Posted October 23, 2015 Share Posted October 23, 2015 They don't, they just don't think Smith will. And the difference between Smith failing and them, if so happened would both lead to missing the playoffs. Murray's learning curve and 2016 draft status is an issue. Season is over. After 2 1/2 years it's pretty obvious that Smith isn't the guy. Have to find out who Murray is and draft accordingly. We've had great running backs, one of the finest O-lines ever, a few great defenses over the years but haven't had a legitimate elite QB. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
West 6,714 Posted October 23, 2015 Share Posted October 23, 2015 Let the line improve over the next few weeks and then plug in Murray..... w Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
DieHard 2,061 Posted October 23, 2015 Share Posted October 23, 2015 Let the line improve over the next few weeks and then plug in Murray..... w Yep. If the Line doesn't improve, why start Murray. You don't have to make a decision with him. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
azchief21 5,278 Posted October 23, 2015 Share Posted October 23, 2015 Yep. If the Line doesn't improve, why start Murray. You don't have to make a decision with him. Yep let Murray sit on the bench til the line improves. Which Dorsey and Reid haven't been able to do in three years. Then finally put Murray in and find out Murray sucks then go looking for a QB. Quit pampering the guy and let him get some experience. Who knows maybe when he plays the line doesn't look so shitty. Maybe has the the guts to stand in, look downfield and make a play.This will open up the run game and help the O line. Right now the defense has no fear that Smith can hurt them downfield. This hurts the O line. Good quarterbacks make the O line better! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
DieHard 2,061 Posted October 23, 2015 Share Posted October 23, 2015 Fair point. I can't believe how easily the line is getting beat. Maybe a quick read will at least make teams more hesitant to blitz. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
West 6,714 Posted October 23, 2015 Share Posted October 23, 2015 Our O line yields the worst kind of HORRIBLE results....Inconsistent horrible results. Its now one guy, its all five of them. Even Grubbs has been getting beat, Morse gets beat 2-3 times a game, Stephenson gets beat 2-3 times a game....The real problem is that you can't play call your way out of inconsistency. w Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mugsy 225 Posted October 23, 2015 Share Posted October 23, 2015 The line is awful. How many times did Reid switch them around in the preseason? Stephenson sucks ass. Fisher should have been back at LT two weeks ago. Morse is awful. Was cutting Kush smart? What about the whole RG debacle. It is a horror show over there. What about Dorsey? He knew it was a mess and he didn't even call Mathis? We had the money to sign him. Mathis made since with the Reid connection. WTF? What about Reid's playcalling? Why has the offense changed so much since adding Maclin? Why does he insist on forcing the ball to him? Look at last week. Parker intercepts a pass and we get the ball on the five yard line. Reid calls two screens to Maclin and then throws a bomb. Seriously???? If we ran the offense we ran the last two years we would be better right now. Why can't we ever just line it up in the I-Form and run behind our ALL PRO FULL BACK? We did that quite a bit the last two years. Now Sherman barely sees the field. We rarely run between the tackles. Everything is out of the shotgun or pistol. Reid doesn't help the line at all. Alex is done. He's been hit too much and he is done caring. He got a couple of big contracts and is ready to cash it in. He doesn't have "heart" anymore. He can't make simple plays under pressure and he doesn't seem to want to. We would be better with Chase Daniel in there. Our secondary went from being ranked #1 to ranked #32. Why? Because we can't generate a pass rush. It is basically the same guys out there. Hali, DJ, and Devito have aged. Especially DJ. Keeping Alexander over JMJ was a huge mistake. JMJ could really run. We are missing that big time. Devito should have been benched for Howard a long time ago. He was awesome at DE last year. Berry has lost his thump. He's lost weight and he isn't the same player. We have no thump in the secondary. Parker never should have been starting at SS. He can barely tackle. Why was he starting there over Abdullah or Branch? He is fine in the nickel but, why did it take so long to figure that out? Losing Phillip Gaines was HUGE and highly underrated. Just a few random thoughts.... My point is that it's not just Alex. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Calichief 3,016 Posted October 23, 2015 Share Posted October 23, 2015 The line is awful. How many times did Reid switch them around in the preseason? Stephenson sucks ass. Fisher should have been back at LT two weeks ago. Morse is awful. Was cutting Kush smart? What about the whole RG debacle. It is a horror show over there. What about Dorsey? He knew it was a mess and he didn't even call Mathis? We had the money to sign him. Mathis made since with the Reid connection. WTF? What about Reid's playcalling? Why has the offense changed so much since adding Maclin? Why does he insist on forcing the ball to him? Look at last week. Parker intercepts a pass and we get the ball on the five yard line. Reid calls two screens to Maclin and then throws a bomb. Seriously???? If we ran the offense we ran the last two years we would be better right now. Why can't we ever just line it up in the I-Form and run behind our ALL PRO FULL BACK? We did that quite a bit the last two years. Now Sherman barely sees the field. We rarely run between the tackles. Everything is out of the shotgun or pistol. Reid doesn't help the line at all. Alex is done. He's been hit too much and he is done caring. He got a couple of big contracts and is ready to cash it in. He doesn't have "heart" anymore. He can't make simple plays under pressure and he doesn't seem to want to. We would be better with Chase Daniel in there. Our secondary went from being ranked #1 to ranked #32. Why? Because we can't generate a pass rush. It is basically the same guys out there. Hali, DJ, and Devito have aged. Especially DJ. Keeping Alexander over JMJ was a huge mistake. JMJ could really run. We are missing that big time. Devito should have been benched for Howard a long time ago. He was awesome at DE last year. Berry has lost his thump. He's lost weight and he isn't the same player. We have no thump in the secondary. Parker never should have been starting at SS. He can barely tackle. Why was he starting there over Abdullah or Branch? He is fine in the nickel but, why did it take so long to figure that out? Losing Phillip Gaines was HUGE and highly underrated. Just a few random thoughts.... My point is that it's not just Alex. Great post. Especially the Andy Reid offense parts. Spot on. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
KCSLC2008 606 Posted October 23, 2015 Share Posted October 23, 2015 Our O line yields the worst kind of HORRIBLE results....Inconsistent horrible results. Its now one guy, its all five of them. Even Grubbs has been getting beat, Morse gets beat 2-3 times a game, Stephenson gets beat 2-3 times a game....The real problem is that you can't play call your way out of inconsistency. w Alex Smith has had his issues with his accuracy and with seeing things when he should. He should be playing better than he is and he should be at least playing at the level he was last year. But what I really hate is when somebody says that when the line gives him time he doesn't succeed. When the line is inconsistent, you don't know where or when any of the five is going to get beat, you don't know when you're going to have time and when you're not. You could say that you should always act like you have time and make the progressions, but when you keep getting sacked when you do that, how are you going to function optimally? Again, he's not even functioning well for the circumstances, I'm just talking about the situation. He's missing on throws that are safe and easy and ones that he completed regularly last year. That's why I am pissed off at him. I haven't been defending him like in the past. Inconsistency doesn't allow for quarterback to know when he has time, so I don't expect that quarterback to function differently when he has time versus when he doesn't. If you are supposed to act like you're getting pressure on every play because you don't know, I would not say he's checking down too often. Or if he should do the same thing regardless because you don't know who's going to get beat and should not check down, then I would also not be saying that he's holding on the ball too long when he tries to go deeper. He should have better pocket awareness. Even though Steve Young said he was good at pre-snap reading skills, he probably should be doing better at that, too. That's not going to help when your players are getting beat despite correct pre-snap reads, but I can't say he's doing a good job with that. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
PhataLerror 370 Posted October 24, 2015 Share Posted October 24, 2015 Let the line improve over the next few weeks and then plug in Murray..... That's what the 49ers did with Alex Smith. Then they played Colin Kaepernick, who was surrounded by far more talent and coaching in 2012 than the Chiefs have in 2015. What happened to Colin Kaepernick? In 2015, without an All-Pro offensive supporting cast around him, his offense is producing -0.11 points per possession in first-quarter drives (to be fair, his offense would have produced +0.06 points per drive in the first-quarter if one field goal attempt had not been blocked). It took the 49ers three seasons to figure out that Colin Kaepernick was never really the reason that team consistently won. I'd hate to see the Chiefs go down that road. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jetlord 10,209 Posted October 24, 2015 Share Posted October 24, 2015 Let the line improve over the next few weeks and then plug in Murray..... w What evidence do you have that the line will improve? If Murray starts, he will play behind this sorry group. My only question is whether his potential can be fairly evaluated while playing behind this line. Still waiting for Smith to have an "injury" that will require a QB change. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
DieHard 2,061 Posted October 24, 2015 Share Posted October 24, 2015 I think you run that risk with any QB that has never played at the pro level. I am not saying Murray is the future. In fact, I have seen more to suggest Daniel has a better chance. But I think you have to see. If they were just trying to put butts in seats, that is what they would do. More people would be excited about Daniel or Murray than Smith. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
PhataLerror 370 Posted October 24, 2015 Share Posted October 24, 2015 If they were just trying to put butts in seats, that is what they would do. More people would be excited about Daniel or Murray than Smith. Really? Because that would tell me they were giving up on this season. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
azchief21 5,278 Posted October 24, 2015 Share Posted October 24, 2015 Wow this thread is an excuse fest. Same players. Same results. Change some players. What could possibly be worse than what we've seen so far? If it's worse or better at least we know. They just keep rolling out the same cast and expect different results. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
DieHard 2,061 Posted October 24, 2015 Share Posted October 24, 2015 Really? Because that would tell me they were giving up on this season. That's my point. Some are saying that they are trying to do just enough to sell tickets. Right now, Daniels would sell tickets. Murray would sell tickets. But they are doing what they think gives them a chance to win. If starting Murray is giving up on the season, then he is not the right guy for the job right now. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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