The No. 1 stat is wins. As a quarterback you get evaluated on winning. – Alex Smith
STATELINE, Nev. — Alex Smith is a winner.
Critics chastise the Kansas City Chiefs quarterback for his infrequent deep balls and more recently for his inability to get his wide receivers into the end zone during 2014's entire 16-game season.
But all Smith does is win.
The former University of Utah quarterback has a career record of 58-49-1 as a starting signal-caller in the NFL.
“Ever since he got out of the womb, he’s a winner,” said former NFL quarterback Trent Dilfer, who led the Baltimore Ravens to victory in Super Bowl XXXV and mentored Smith after being traded to the San Francisco 49ers in 2006. “He knows how to win, he knows how to get the best out of people, he plays within the system and he doesn’t try to play outside the system.”
During Smith’s two seasons in Kansas City, the Chiefs have posted 11-5 and 9-7 records — both marks good for second place in the tough AFC West. The Chiefs opened the 2013 season with a 9-0 record and made the playoffs for the first time since the 2010 season.
Even though, incredibly, not one of the Chiefs' receivers scored on a touchdown pass a season ago, Smith still tossed 18 TDs and threw only six interceptions. Smith’s 65.3 percent completion rate was his second best in nine NFL seasons and his six picks were his second-lowest total in years in which he played 15 or more games.
Smith said two stats enlighten his success as an NFL starting quarterback.
“The No. 1 stat is wins. As a quarterback you get evaluated on winning,” said Smith, who tied for 48th place in the American Century Championship celebrity golf tournament at Lake Tahoe last weekend. “You touch the ball every single play, so you have a big impact on wins and losses. And obviously touchdowns-to-interceptions has a strong correlation to winning and losing.
“But in the end, it’s finding a way to win and doing whatever it takes.”
In 2011, if not for two key fumbles by punt returner Kyle Williams, Smith would have led the 49ers into the Super Bowl, but instead the Niners lost 20-17 to the New York Giants in the NFC Championship game and finished with a 14-4 record.
A season later, Smith lost his starting job to Colin Kaepernick after suffering a concussion in Week 10. Despite leading the 49ers to a 6-2-1 record and regaining his health shortly thereafter, Smith never started another game for San Francisco, and the top pick in the 2005 draft was traded to the Chiefs in 2013 for two draft choices.
Since joining the Chiefs, Smith has enjoyed the win-loss success that started when he quarterbacked Helix High School in La Mesa, California. He directed Helix to a 25-1 mark and a pair of San Diego California Interscholastic Federation section titles.
That propensity to win continued at Utah, where Smith guided the Utes to a 21-1 record during the 2003 and 2004 seasons. In 2004, Smith threw 32 touchdowns and ran for 10 scores to become the Utes’ first finalist for the Heisman Trophy.
Last season, the Chiefs struggled with injuries on defense and a lack of scoring from its receiving corps, but Smith still led the team to a winning record. Smith said he doesn’t care if four-time Pro Bowl running back Jamaal Charles carries the ball into the end zone or he hits tight end Travis Kelce with a scoring pass.
“I just want to score, and I think we have a bunch of guys who think like that and coaches who think like that,” Smith said. “No one is worried about their individual statistics, and all of a sudden it got blown up in the media, but Kelce got a lot of opportunities in the red zone and made the most of them, and we have one of the best backs in the league (in Charles) who can score 10 different ways.”
The Chiefs haven’t won a postseason game since 1993, but the organization has invested in Smith to end that drought. Prior to the 2014 season, the Chiefs rewarded Smith with a four-year contract extension.
“I think Alex is primed to have a really special year,” said former Washington Redskins quarterback Joe Theismann, now an NFL analyst. ”I think Alex is the kind of quarterback who is capable of leading a team to a championship. He manages a game well, he’s smart and knows what he wants to do with the football.”
Smith believes a championship is within reach under third-year coach Andy Reid.
“Without a doubt, we’re capable of that,” Smith said. “For me, you have to give yourself that opportunity and with that, it starts with getting in the playoffs. You have 16 games to scrape and battle and try to get a ticket to the dance, and from there, it’s anybody’s tournament. That’s the great thing about the NFL: A team can get hot and win a championship.”
Notes: Smith said he has tried to remain involved with the Utah football program since entering the NFL.
“Coach (Kyle) Whittingham and I text a decent amount of time,” Smith said. “Whenever I’m there, I try to do something for the team.”
Smith delivered a commencement speech in 2014 and made a contribution to help the Utes rebuild their weight room several years ago.
“Utah will always be special to me,” Smith said. “They were the school that gave me an opportunity, and I grew so much as a person and player there.”