Chiefs Teicher:Prodded by Andy Reid, Chiefs QB Alex Smith learning to be more aggressive - Page 26

**Tribal Warfare** · 06-05-2013, 06:26 PM

Prodded by Andy Reid, Chiefs QB Alex Smith learning to be more aggressive
By ADAM TEICHER
The Kansas City Star
One of the qualities the Chiefs like in new quarterback Alex Smith is his recent history with few turnovers. Smith threw just 10 interceptions in his last 25 games for the San Francisco 49ers, a stat that looks extremely pretty in Kansas City after Chiefs quarterbacks committed 27 turnovers last season.

Smith’s low turnover rate was due at least in part by his reluctance to throw the ball down the field. He was referred to by frustrated 49ers fans as Captain Checkdown for his habit of throwing shorter patterns to receivers for shorter gains.

Smith is in the process of being reprogrammed by Andy Reid, his new coach. Reid doesn’t want to turn Smith into a turnover machine but wants him to be more aggressive, particularly during offseason practice.

“You want to get a feel for the offense now, particularly when you’re new at it (and) if there are close throws, challenge it, see what you can get away with,” Reid said. “If it ends up being an interception, OK, it’s an interception. You learn from it. These are smart guys so they learn from it and once they get into the season, they’re not experimenting with it on game day and they know what they can get away with and know what they can’t.

“It’s a new offense. I would tell any quarterback that comes in new that that’s what you need to do. I’ve told them all that. Go ahead and take your shots and see what you can get away with, within reason. But if it’s a close throw, there are going to be a few of those in the National Football League on game day so you need to know what you can get away with on each route.”

Smith and the other Chiefs quarterbacks were rewarded with several long completions in Wednesday’s practice. Smith had three such plays, including two to Jon Baldwin, while Tyler Bray and Ricky Stanzi had one apiece.

Wednesday’s barrage of big passing plays isn’t necessarily an indication the deep ball is back in the Chiefs’ offense. But since such plays have been scarce for the Chiefs in each of the past two seasons, they’re taking it as an encouraging sign.

“We’re just kind of continuing to press to see what we can do … finding out what we’re capable of,” Smith said. “You’ve got to find that out at some point. This is what the practice field is for.”

Smith was the NFL’s highest-rated passer last season before he was injured, missed a start and then replaced by Colin Kaepernick as San Francisco’s starting quarterback. Smith was completing more than 70 percent of his passes, a high rate, and had just five interceptions.

Still, he had just 30 touchdown passes in his final 25 starts for the 49ers. While that’s a good number as a ratio with his 10 interceptions, it still represents a shortage of big plays.

Smith won’t turn into a mad bomber overnight, if he ever does.

“You want to stay aggressive,” Smith said. “But in the end I’m always trying to make the right read and throw where the defense is telling me to throw. You don’t come out here and predetermine anything, like ‘Oh, I’m going to chuck it deep on this play.’ I’m constantly trying to just trust my eyes and what I’m seeing out there, trust my reads and what I’ve prepared for and then come out here and throw good balls.”

For his part, Reid might be OK with that. But for now, when an interception costs the Chiefs nothing, he would prefer Smith be more of a gambler.

“Everybody is all on board (with Smith),” Reid said. “He’s a good football player. He’s showing that (along with) good leadership. I’m asking him to do a ton of things. He’s handling it. We’ve had an interception here or there but that’s all part of this thing. You’ve got to find out about the offense and you can’t do it with your hands in your pocket. You’ve got to go out and try things and experiment. That’s what he’s doing now.

“It’s just good stuff. He’s staying aggressive with the ball, and I appreciate that.”

The final offseason practice is today. The Chiefs won’t get together again as a group until training camp begins in July at Missouri Western State University.

Smith indicated he may try to throw to some Chiefs receivers during their downtime in an effort to stay sharp.

“We’re heads and shoulder above where we were a couple of months ago,” he said. “But that’s a never-ending thing. I don’t think it’s something like, ‘We’ve got a good feel for each other so we don’t need to work anymore.’ You’re constantly working at it. This is our job, this is our craft. Every single day, it’s coming out here and pushing to get better.”

chiefzilla1501 · 06-19-2013, 04:27 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by mcaj22

That was the original point. The argument was "Any coach can look good with Rodgers at QB." I was simply pointing out McCarthy knows QBs just as much as Reid does PLUS he can actually manage the game. That's why McCarthy has a Super Bowl win with his good QB and why Reid does not with all the good QBs hes had season success with.

It's like saying "Anyone can coach that San Antonio Spurs roster and win"

That's a fair point. But let's be real about something. McNabb was a pretty good QB, but he's no Aaron Rodgers. I wonder how well Reid would do with Rodgers as his QB. And aside from McNabb, he has not had great talent to work with.

milkman · 06-19-2013, 04:29 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by chiefzilla1501

I hope you're not being serious. McCarthy's a hell of a coach, but pumping up his Kansas City resume with Gannon/Bono/Grbac and a pretty mediocre Saints resume with Aaron Brooks. And then downplaying that Reid coached Favre/Hasselbeck in Green Bay and coached a Vick and Garcia led team to the playoffs?

It's ridiculous that anyone would undermine Reid as an offensive coach. He's a terrific offensive coach. The reason why McCarthy is a better coach is because he's 100x the game manager than Reid, not because of the ability to handle QBs or run an offense.

I believe that Holmgren is responsible for the development of Favre, Brunell and Hasselbeck.

mcaj22 · 06-19-2013, 04:32 PM

you want to argue that anyone can with Aaron Rodgers but the fact is McCarthy had to actually develop him

Rodgers was the guy that fell in the draft because 23 teams had a knock on him that he would bust out of the NFL like similar QBs did in the same college offense, his hands were small, etc.

Rodgers sat behind a hall of fame QB and McCarthy was able to mold him into what he wanted, who nobody gave a shit about because nobody ever thought he could follow in Brett Favre's footsteps. Aaron Rodgers had to win all those Farve lovers in that culture over.

Meanwhile, Andy Reid couldnt win the big one with his NUMBER 2 OVERALL QB HE HAD FOR A DECADE. There was like 5 QBs Reid could have taken and he nailed it between McNabb as he was 1 of 2 QBs even successful from that draft. And Reid still couldnt win it with him with about a 10 year window, and one of the best DC's in the NFL.

I like Reid, but to say McCarthy is worse than Reid is laughable. Reid has always had the better talent in a longer window and couldnt win what McCarthy did. They did everything in Philly for Reid and McNabb short of stealing the Lombardi Trophy and bringing it to Philly.

milkman · 06-19-2013, 04:34 PM

McNabb was still an inaccurate QB in Philly.

Reid's offense is a passer friendly offense, and you just need to be a decent QB to succeed.

The Eagles went to 4 NFC Championships and a SB on the strength of Jim Johnson's defense.

mcaj22 · 06-19-2013, 04:34 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by chiefzilla1501

That's a fair point. But let's be real about something. McNabb was a pretty good QB, but he's no Aaron Rodgers. I wonder how well Reid would do with Rodgers as his QB. And aside from McNabb, he has not had great talent to work with.

the last 10 posts that were arguing for Reid was because of "making McNabb look good" so which is it

making the #2 overall pick look good or making the #24 overall pick that fell in the draft look good and win the super bowl?

mcaj22 · 06-19-2013, 04:35 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by milkman

McNabb was still an inaccurate QB in Philly.

Reid's offense is a passer friendly offense, and you just need to be a decent QB to succeed.

The Eagles went to 4 NFC Chamionships and a SB on the strength of Jim Jonson's defense.

that was my point why McCarthy is coach above Reid. lol

The whole argument was "list of coaches better than Reid"

Sorter listed them. Someone said McCarthy is not better. They are wrong. I'm arguing why he is.

**BigMeatballDave** · 06-19-2013, 04:41 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by mcaj22

that was my point why McCarthy is coach above Reid. lol

The whole argument was "list of coaches better than Reid"

Sorter listed them. Someone said McCarthy is not better. They are wrong. I'm arguing why he is.

And then you went on to list some shitty QBs.

Bono

Hammock Parties · 06-19-2013, 04:45 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by BossChief

Reid made AJ Feeley look good

A 75.4 QB rating is good?

Quote:

and had Vick, McNabb and Garcia play arguably the best football of their careers.

Jeff Garcia had always been a good QB.

Michael Vick was a big wet fart in Philly.

**BigMeatballDave** · 06-19-2013, 05:04 PM

Vick has always been vastly overrated.

milkman · 06-19-2013, 05:05 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by TrueFanDave

Vick has always been vastly overrated.

He did, however, have his one true good season at QB under Reid, so credit where it is due.

chiefzilla1501 · 06-19-2013, 05:08 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Branden Albert's Huge Balls

A 75.4 QB rating is good?

Jeff Garcia had always been a good QB.

Michael Vick was a big wet fart in Philly.

Garcia was 36 and his noodle arm was so bad by the time he got to Philly, he was throwing Tyler Palko long bombs. Michael Vick wasn't a big wet fart in Philly. He had a terrific 2010, a solid enough 2011 (8-8 despite a putrid defense), and for some reason 2012 the entire team went off the rails. His struggles in 2011 were because he was getting knocked around and was supposedly playing with broken ribs.

-King- · 06-19-2013, 05:11 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by milkman

McNabb was still an inaccurate QB in Philly.

Reid's offense is a passer friendly offense, and you just need to be a decent QB to succeed.

The Eagles went to 4 NFC Championships and a SB on the strength of Jim Johnson's defense.

They had a damn good offense those years too. Their lowest rank in points per game in those season was 11th. They were a pretty well balanced team.

Hammock Parties · 06-19-2013, 05:24 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by TrueFanDave

Vick has always been vastly overrated.

And yet still better than Alex Smith.

Reid is not going to get more out of this guy than Harbaugh did. You are delusional if you believe that.

BigBeauford · 06-19-2013, 05:28 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Branden Albert's Huge Balls

And yet still better than Alex Smith.

Reid is not going to get more out of this guy than Harbaugh did. You are delusional if you believe that.

Yes, enough about the merits of Andy Reid, we need to get back to the task at hand: Alex Smith is a mediocre qb.

milkman · 06-19-2013, 05:32 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Branden Albert's Huge Balls

And yet still better than Alex Smith.

Reid is not going to get more out of this guy than Harbaugh did. You are delusional if you believe that.

What is more?

I think Reid does a fine job of masking deficiencies, while getting the most out of the mediocre abilities of the QBs he coaches.

I think there are coaches who bring out the best with their QBs, while some simply don't get the worst.

Reid is in the latter group.

I think he'll get better numbers from Smith than Harbaugh, but that is simply a function of more attempts.

He'll still get the middle of the pack game manager that Harbaugh got out of him.

06-05-2013, 06:26 PM
Tribal Warfare The Boom Boom Room Join Date: Aug 2000 Location: Far Beyond Comprehension Casino cash: $922813	Teicher:Prodded by Andy Reid, Chiefs QB Alex Smith learning to be more aggressive Prodded by Andy Reid, Chiefs QB Alex Smith learning to be more aggressive By ADAM TEICHER The Kansas City Star One of the qualities the Chiefs like in new quarterback Alex Smith is his recent history with few turnovers. Smith threw just 10 interceptions in his last 25 games for the San Francisco 49ers, a stat that looks extremely pretty in Kansas City after Chiefs quarterbacks committed 27 turnovers last season. Smith’s low turnover rate was due at least in part by his reluctance to throw the ball down the field. He was referred to by frustrated 49ers fans as Captain Checkdown for his habit of throwing shorter patterns to receivers for shorter gains. Smith is in the process of being reprogrammed by Andy Reid, his new coach. Reid doesn’t want to turn Smith into a turnover machine but wants him to be more aggressive, particularly during offseason practice. “You want to get a feel for the offense now, particularly when you’re new at it (and) if there are close throws, challenge it, see what you can get away with,” Reid said. “If it ends up being an interception, OK, it’s an interception. You learn from it. These are smart guys so they learn from it and once they get into the season, they’re not experimenting with it on game day and they know what they can get away with and know what they can’t. “It’s a new offense. I would tell any quarterback that comes in new that that’s what you need to do. I’ve told them all that. Go ahead and take your shots and see what you can get away with, within reason. But if it’s a close throw, there are going to be a few of those in the National Football League on game day so you need to know what you can get away with on each route.” Smith and the other Chiefs quarterbacks were rewarded with several long completions in Wednesday’s practice. Smith had three such plays, including two to Jon Baldwin, while Tyler Bray and Ricky Stanzi had one apiece. Wednesday’s barrage of big passing plays isn’t necessarily an indication the deep ball is back in the Chiefs’ offense. But since such plays have been scarce for the Chiefs in each of the past two seasons, they’re taking it as an encouraging sign. “We’re just kind of continuing to press to see what we can do … finding out what we’re capable of,” Smith said. “You’ve got to find that out at some point. This is what the practice field is for.” Smith was the NFL’s highest-rated passer last season before he was injured, missed a start and then replaced by Colin Kaepernick as San Francisco’s starting quarterback. Smith was completing more than 70 percent of his passes, a high rate, and had just five interceptions. Still, he had just 30 touchdown passes in his final 25 starts for the 49ers. While that’s a good number as a ratio with his 10 interceptions, it still represents a shortage of big plays. Smith won’t turn into a mad bomber overnight, if he ever does. “You want to stay aggressive,” Smith said. “But in the end I’m always trying to make the right read and throw where the defense is telling me to throw. You don’t come out here and predetermine anything, like ‘Oh, I’m going to chuck it deep on this play.’ I’m constantly trying to just trust my eyes and what I’m seeing out there, trust my reads and what I’ve prepared for and then come out here and throw good balls.” For his part, Reid might be OK with that. But for now, when an interception costs the Chiefs nothing, he would prefer Smith be more of a gambler. “Everybody is all on board (with Smith),” Reid said. “He’s a good football player. He’s showing that (along with) good leadership. I’m asking him to do a ton of things. He’s handling it. We’ve had an interception here or there but that’s all part of this thing. You’ve got to find out about the offense and you can’t do it with your hands in your pocket. You’ve got to go out and try things and experiment. That’s what he’s doing now. “It’s just good stuff. He’s staying aggressive with the ball, and I appreciate that.” The final offseason practice is today. The Chiefs won’t get together again as a group until training camp begins in July at Missouri Western State University. Smith indicated he may try to throw to some Chiefs receivers during their downtime in an effort to stay sharp. “We’re heads and shoulder above where we were a couple of months ago,” he said. “But that’s a never-ending thing. I don’t think it’s something like, ‘We’ve got a good feel for each other so we don’t need to work anymore.’ You’re constantly working at it. This is our job, this is our craft. Every single day, it’s coming out here and pushing to get better.”
Posts: 42,072

06-19-2013, 04:32 PM	#378
mcaj22 MVP Join Date: Feb 2010 Casino cash: $10014454	you want to argue that anyone can with Aaron Rodgers but the fact is McCarthy had to actually develop him Rodgers was the guy that fell in the draft because 23 teams had a knock on him that he would bust out of the NFL like similar QBs did in the same college offense, his hands were small, etc. Rodgers sat behind a hall of fame QB and McCarthy was able to mold him into what he wanted, who nobody gave a shit about because nobody ever thought he could follow in Brett Favre's footsteps. Aaron Rodgers had to win all those Farve lovers in that culture over. Meanwhile, Andy Reid couldnt win the big one with his NUMBER 2 OVERALL QB HE HAD FOR A DECADE. There was like 5 QBs Reid could have taken and he nailed it between McNabb as he was 1 of 2 QBs even successful from that draft. And Reid still couldnt win it with him with about a 10 year window, and one of the best DC's in the NFL. I like Reid, but to say McCarthy is worse than Reid is laughable. Reid has always had the better talent in a longer window and couldnt win what McCarthy did. They did everything in Philly for Reid and McNabb short of stealing the Lombardi Trophy and bringing it to Philly.
Posts: 11,886

06-19-2013, 04:34 PM	#379
milkman Dumbass! Join Date: Aug 2000 Location: Leading the Marty bashing Casino cash: $10029395	McNabb was still an inaccurate QB in Philly. Reid's offense is a passer friendly offense, and you just need to be a decent QB to succeed. The Eagles went to 4 NFC Championships and a SB on the strength of Jim Johnson's defense. __________________
Posts: 70,769

06-19-2013, 05:04 PM	#384
BigMeatballDave GBM 8-12-15 Join Date: Aug 2000 Location: Dayton, Oh. Casino cash: $10052154	Vick has always been vastly overrated.
Posts: 59,997