DawgTalkers.net Forums DawgTalk Pure Football Forum A John Dorsey-Alex Smith reunion in Cleveland makes a lot of sense

A John Dorsey-Alex Smith reunion in Cleveland makes a lot of sense

http://www.espn.com/blog/kansas-city-chi...-a-lot-of-sense

Adam TeicherESPN Staff Writer

KANSAS CITY, Mo. -- One of John Dorsey’s first moves after joining the Kansas City Chiefs as general manager in 2013 was to trade for quarterback Alex Smith.

Dorsey will soon be looking for a quarterback in his new job as general manager of the Cleveland Browns. Smith will soon be available, assuming the Chiefs clear the way after the season for Patrick Mahomes II to be their starting quarterback in 2018.

It makes a lot of sense for history to repeat itself in this instance.

The Browns have 12 picks in next year’s draft, including two in the first round and three in the second, so they could spare one or two for a veteran quarterback capable of stabilizing a position that has been a disaster in Cleveland.

The Browns likely will have the first pick in the draft. Dorsey won’t pass on a quarterback prospect he likes, so Smith would have some company, as he currently does in Kansas City with Mahomes.

But having Smith would give the Browns the luxury of giving that top pick a redshirt season, as the Chiefs are doing with Mahomes this year. Cleveland’s young quarterback could then take over as the starter in 2019, when Smith’s contract expires.

Dorsey is taking over a situation not unlike the one he inherited in Kansas City. The Chiefs were coming off a 2-14 season and had the first pick in the draft.

No quarterback was worthy of that pick, so the Chiefs used it instead on a lineman, tackle Eric Fisher. But the Chiefs needed a quarterback to improve the most important position, one the franchise had long neglected.

Smith, in hindsight, was worth the two second-round draft picks the Chiefs sent to the San Francisco 49ers in trade. He has been spectacular at times this year, and otherwise a solid, steady player in his five seasons with Kansas City.

He led the Chiefs to the playoffs as a wild-card entrant in his first season in Kansas City and then to the postseason in two of the past three seasons, including as AFC West champions last year.

Smith’s role in Cleveland would be a different one. He wouldn’t be viewed as a long-term solution, as he was in Kansas City. He would be someone capable of providing for the short term some reliable quarterback play, something the Browns haven’t had for some time.

The Browns could do a lot worse at quarterback in their first season under a new general manager, and Dorsey is smart enough to know it.

I don't know what Dorsey will do. I have been thinking about it quite a bit and I have come up w/several scenarios which at the end of the day, tells me that I have no idea what he will do.

I wouldn't mind seeing Smith here. A high percentage QB would be perfect for a team still building.

I think I have some idea of what he will do. I believe Sashi was going to do the same thing in the 2018 draft. Stack the Deck. Find a QB in Free Agency and draft the #1 draft pick as a QB. This would eliminate QB being an issue for this team, as either the veteran, the rookie, or Kizer will be your franchise guy. It is up to Hue to develop the younger two and find a starter. This would eliminate any questions on the position, turning the weakest position on the field into a strength.

The rest of the Draft is BPA through the fourth round.

I was talking about specific players.

I get it Vers.... we would have to look at his draft and FA history to notice any trends/habits.

j/c

This speculation is a natural consequence of the situation. Dorsey brought Smith to KC, Dorsey is now in Cleveland, Smith is likely to be traded this off-season, Cleveland could use a veteran QB...it all follows.

That doesn't mean it will happen, it's just a natural speculation to make. That said, I agree with the overall thought process. We have Kizer who needs time to find his level. We (probably) have the first pick in a QB rich draft. Drafting the best available QB, bringing in a veteran to allow them to redshirt the draftee, and letting Kizer and the new guy compete for starter/backup rolls in 2019 sounds to me like a good plan.

Smith will be 34 next season. He may have 2-3 quality seasons left in the tank. He would definitely be worth looking at and I like that idea more than Eli Manning coming here.

Not a SHOT IN HELL!!!

One mistake a lot of folks are going to make with Dorsey ... U can’t really pass judgement on the QB’s he drafted in KC .. once they signed Smith (and that was Reid) QB was not a priority for them ..... he was drafting for back ups with upside hoping to hit a HR ... until this year when they pulled the trigger on Mahomes ... i would GUESS that was Reid ... but thats just a guess ...

Hard to say what he does. We could draft a QB at #1. We could trade down a bit and still select a QB, or we could select another position and select a QB at 7 or wherever the Houston pick falls.

There are 3-4-5 QBs, assuming all come out. Knowing which one turns out to be the guy Doresy likes will sawy which road we take. All of those QBs areing going in the first 7 picks. He may decide there are 3, any of which he likes. Then it's a matter of projecting what otther teams might do before us.

Most likely, we don't fool around and select a QB at #1, then maybe trade down out of 7. Depo is the strategy officer. Much depends on if he and Dorsey see eye to eye. It's obvious to me that Jimmy still likes the plan that was in place as a whole. It just needed a different trigger...someone with a bigger football voice, but the plan to gain more picks next year is always a good plan.

As for a vet QB, sure, I like the idea, be it Smith or whoever.

Also, we are hearing much about cap space. It sounds to me like Haslam is willing to spend the cash. Spending to bring in Cousins would change much.

I also think we move up with some of those 2nd rounders. It isn't just about quantity. Quality counts in my book. That top 2nd rounder is valuable. Teams have all night to fall in love with a player..turn that into a future 1st rounder by trading down 12 slots.

That would be quite an upgrade. Is this a shocker trade and draft kind of guy? Sashi stocked the pantry and losing saw to the rest IMO. But this would be wonderful, dump Kessler, at least, and go. Get best QB at 1. BMA or as needed by position for the remainder. But this man needs to load the gun IMO. Heavy offensive draft in first two rounds.

Are you really going to go down the road that Dorsey didn't do anything good in KC and that all the good moves were done by Reid?

Dorsey doesn't strike me as the kind of guy who gets bullied. I think he is his own man. I think that is why he gone. Reid won the power struggle.

I do not believe that Dorsey stood idly by while Reid forced Smith and Mahommes on him.

I don't know what happened because I was not there, but if I were to guess, I would say that the two men agreed on bringing Smith in.

You are right Vers. Dorsey should be fired.

Substitute Dorsey for Sashi
Substiture Reid for Hue
Substitute Smith for McCarron
Substitute Mahommes for whoever.

Yet Dorsey is already getting the defense. You can't make this stuff up.

WTF is that? ... where did i say anything remotely close to that ...

I was trying to let folks know that the QB’s they drafted in KC the TWO BUMS Murray and the other dude were not a reflection of what Dorsey will do here ... did u MISS or IGNORE the line where i said ... QB WAS NOT A PRIORITY IN KC .... how did u interprete that or did u just IGNORE it ...

Did u MISS or IGNORE the word GUESS when it came to drafting Mahomes ... i even said the word GUESS twice so as to avoid any confusion ... next time I’ll also bold it so u wont miss it ... ...

PS. I thought and still think Smith was a DUMB ASS SIGNING ... if i was doing anything it was STICKING UP for Dorsey ...

I’m still not sure where your reply came from ... i do know it was complete and utter bs asking me about going down some fictitious road ....

We are not communicating very well right now. I'll leave it at that.

This article says what I have been advocating for at least a month now.. It makes all the sense in the world and I believe that Smith can run Hue's offense.

I wanted Smith here when he ended up in KC. You would have thought I'd shot someones mom by the responses I got. lmao

Granted, we have great numbers on both sides of the asset sheet. However, I would much rather front load a contract for Kirk Cousins than trade assets for a one year lease on Alex Smith. If Alex agrees to a contract before the trade, I might change my mind. Still, giving away two 2s means giving away at least one productive, young, cheap player (assuming we can at least shoot 50% with our second round picks ) for a player that is not as good as Cousins.

If Washington hangs the franchise tag on Kirk, his 2018 salary escalates to 34 million. I suspect they'll use the transition tag, save 6 million and try to match competing offers. We have money to burn and enough immediate cap space to eliminate most players from the Kirk Cousins Sweepstakes.

I agree with you but I'm not so sure which veteran QB we acquire will be a specific target. I think the requirement will be more aligned with a veteran they believe will be a good mentor for our young QB's, ( Kizer and draft pick ), than it will actually be a great band aid as the starter.

And you are right about Alex Smith. At 33 he will be entering the down side of his career soon. The market for QB's may make signing him unrealistic. If someone has a team on the cusp of contention, a team that feels an Alex Smith may be the last remaining piece to their puzzle, Smith would be worth a fortune. For a team like us, where we are building for the future at the QB position, that doesn't seem like such a value.

I would love to see him here with a top QB selection. It solidifies the position for now and would be a God send. The question becomes does such a high investment make sense for a bridge QB for this FO. That's a question that is way beyond my pay grade. lol

I would have to agree with you. It's not like we don't have the cap space to make sure we shore up the QB position.

But that contract of three years has its questions IMO. I think Smith will have the luxury of getting a four year deal somewhere. It's like I was referring to earlier, there's going to be a team or two that's on the brink of contention. While we will be looking for a QB to fill in the gap for now, other teams may be thinking that Smith can be that one missing piece that will tip them over the edge.

That may make his value vary greatly between us and them. But I do like your scenario much better than mine. lol

I'm pretty sure they cannot go back to the Transition Tag. Remember: If they franchise tag Cousins - which may be the only way they can keep him - it'll cost TWO first Rd picks to pry him away...plus the ridiculous $$$ on the Tag.

We might make that move if we were ready to win it all in 2018...but we aren't. I don't see Cousins as an option unless/until WAS signs a vet QB replacement.

j/c:

I don't know if Dorsey would want to trade for Smith or not. I don't even know if he still likes Alex Smith as a qb.

For the purposes of this discussion, let's just say he does like Smith. I think the odds of him trading for Smith would be greatly influenced by who we take in the first round.

If we take Rosen, there would be no need to trade for Smith because Rosen will be ready to start day one.

However, if we take a qb like Darnold or Allen, the odds of trading for Smith would increase, because both are more developmental guys who could benefit from some extra time.

With all of that said, I kinda doubt we trade for Smith one way or the other. Pure speculation, but I just don't feel it will be something we will pursue.

One thing that has helped Dorsey become a good gm was the fact that he believed AAron rodgers could develop into a great QB. I think Smith was more of, damn there just aint no QB to be found. He can manage till we find one. Then smith just happened to work well there. Again though, Smith was a guy few believed in. Didnt have the big arm or great size.

Back to Dorsey and Thompson loving Aaron Rodgers. They loved his run threat. They loved his fantastic arm. He didnt have the bret farve size. He had mechanics issues but they felt it could be fixed. He was from that Cal system that had produced Harrington but they felt he had a great mind for the game and could learn a complex system but folks hated his release and being a tedford Qb.

Anyway, it will be really interesting to see who he goes for. I know Sashi loved Lamar Jackson. will we go for a smith, Cousins, Bradford or a Keenum Will we go for a Rosen, Darnold, Jackson, Rudolph or Mayfield. Maybe 2 of those lol.

I tend to think it will be two QB's. A FA to hold the fort down and a high draft pick.

My reasoning is that Dorsey understands just how badly the QB position needs addressed. The other reason is the emphasis Haslam has put on fixing the QB position.

With all of the cap space we have combined with all of the draft picks we have, there's really no reason not to double down on the position.

one from column A and one from column B imo

That is also the way I envision it, Pit'...

I think a lot will depend on what Denver wants to do .. their team is not getting any younger and Smith could get them one last shot before their window closes ....

Please, no Alex Smith.

What’s up with you guys always wanting to bring non answers here.

Man y’all wanted jay cutlers bum ass too.

Not overly interested especially if one of our top three or picks is involved. Much rather overpay for a FA than give picks away.

Agreed. At this point Alex Smith would only be a spot starter and another QB coach. He would be more valuable as a mentor to DK and whomever we draft than as a player. He certainly is not worth a 1st or 2nd round pick probably not even a 3rd. At least that's how I feel.

We need play makers along with a QB.
We have 0 play makers.
No yards after catch.
No special team stand out.
No interceptions for touchdowns.
They need a lot more help than just a QB.

I probably go calvin Ridley with our 2nd pick.


We might be able to trade down a few slots and still get him, along with a first rounder next year.


I do like what Sashi and Depo brought, building draft stock. I do hope Dorsey listens to Deop.....Depo is a long range thinker with something to give.


I do like Dorsey, but he doesn't strike me as the sharpest tool in the shed.

I would like to see a veteran in FA, our #1 pick and Kizer competing in training camp next season. That would be a good start. I don't think going overboard on spending in FA at the QB position is the answer. I'd like to see the $$$ spent on play makers.

I’m still baffled as to why he is this great talent evaluator ... i dont see it at all ... not sure exactly what he built in KC ....

Very happy we have him ... but i’ll wait before i start praising him ... especially based on his track record ...

To me this is exactly like folks saying Hue was some kind of QB whisperer when he arrived here ... its simply wasn’t there then and I dont see it now with Dorsey ..

*shrugs* ....

Maybe it's because KC has a very solid roster? He sure as hell has a better resume than Sashi did.

I'll wait until he screws up before I bury him.

*shrugs*

What does signing Alex Smith accomplish?