Alex Smith of the Kansas City Chiefs is the quintessential game manager. Sure, if he has to match Aaron Rodgers or Tom Brady score for score, his team’s losing. But at the same time, Smith usually isn’t going to lose you games either. He does a good job managing games and not turning the ball over. Among all NFL quarterbacks, Smith’s 91.2 passer rating puts him 16th in the league. His QBR of 66 was 11th among his brethren this season. Smith’s quite literally the definition of average, and that’s not a bad thing.
However, this week, he’s going against an extremely good offense in the Pittsburgh Steelers. Even if Ben Roethlisberger is injured, Big Ben tends to play better when he’s hurting. Smith is going to have to put up points this week for the Chiefs to win. Luckily, Kansas City has an extremely good defense that gets after quarterbacks and forces turnovers.
Smith also has the right guys in front of him. Kansas City’s offensive line more often than not gives him enough time to find the open receiver. Speaking of receivers, his weapons are very unique and deadly. Travis Kelce might be the best tight end in the league not named Rob Gronkowski. Tyreek Hill is a threat to score every time he touches the ball. Smith could significantly help his legacy by beating Roethlisberger this weekend.