Alex Smith is in quite the Super Bowl predicament: What team will he root for?
The former Utah quarterback was drafted No. 1 overall in 2005 by the San Francisco 49ers, spending eight seasons with the organization before enjoying a career renaissance with the Kansas City Chiefs from 2013-17.
With the 49ers and Chiefs now set to battle in Feb. 11’s Super Bowl in Las Vegas, Smith — now working as an ESPN analyst — joined “The Adam Schefter Podcast” earlier this week to discuss his feelings on the matchup and why he has “so much love for both these teams.”
“Obviously Patrick (Mahomes), Andy (Reid) and (Travis) Kelce, those are my guys in Kansas City,” Smith said. “I live back here in the Bay Area now, my kids are huge Niners fans and I’ve gotten reconnected with that franchise too ... I love both these teams besides the fact that I played for them, these were my teams from the get-go, and the fact that they both made it through the entire season is unbelievable. I’m pumped. Not sure where my (rooting interest) is at with (these) two teams, but I think it’s a great matchup.”
Here are a few notable highlights from Smith during his appearance on Schefter’s podcast.
On former teammates Patrick Mahomes and Travis Kelce
“Patrick, given his stardom and all that he’s accomplished, he’s an awesome dude, great teammate and great person, I couldn’t be happier for him. (He’s) just so real and authentic...
“... The personality and the passion that Trav has is the same. I knew him when he was fresh out of college and still kind of a knucklehead, so to see him grow into what he is now is unbelievable.”
On Brock Purdy’s rise from ‘Mr. Irrelevant’ to superstardom
“With Brock Purdy, is there a better story in football? It’s not all about the measurables. ... I won the stupid beauty contest that is the combine and draft, and here’s a guy that doesn’t measure up, and we still don’t get it. We still don’t understand it’s not about height, weight and (40-yard dash time), there’s so much that goes on (mentally) and so much in your heart that makes you what you are, and it’s so cool to see what he’s doing.”
On fans and analysts criticizing Purdy
“As he began to find himself in the MVP conversation, so many people were offended by it ... for some reason, I feel like people feel the need to tear down Brock Purdy more than anybody else, and I don’t get it ... it’s lazy analysis, they’re not watching the film.
“This guy put together one of the best seasons for the quarterback position in the last 20 years. He broke the 49ers’ passing record, he broke Joe Montana’s single-season passer rating record, this is arguably the greatest quarterbacking season in 49ers history, and I’m not saying that lightly. ... He led the NFL in touchdown passes outside of the pocket and led the NFL in passing downfield, all these stupid narratives that people say about him just couldn’t be more wrong, and it really fired me up this past week.”
On Mahomes’ place among the all-time great quarterbacks
“There’s only one guy that he’s chasing, and it’s Tom Brady ... the thing that I love about Patrick, though, is this guy is just such a competitor, man, he just doesn’t care. I think he actually relished this year, with all their struggles on offense, the drops and everyone saying it wasn’t their year, I think he just relished it. I actually know he did, I’ve been texting with him these past few weeks. This guy just has a killer instinct, he loves a challenge ... this guy’s on a mission, and he’s just wired differently.”
Smith’s 2024 Super Bowl prediction
“Having watched this Niners defense, I think they’re in trouble. You gotta play man and you gotta come after (Mahomes). I still think he’s phenomenal against pressure ... but you gotta man up and come after him. If you sit back in zone, he’s gonna dice you up, and that’s all the Niners play, they predominantly play zone.
“The only chance the Niners have to win is a little bit of a shootout, but this Chiefs defense just continues to elevate their game ... they play such great team defense ... I think Patrick is gonna have a day.”