Quote:
Originally Posted by chiefzilla1501
This isn't 2 games in isolation. It fits a pattern we've seen over several years...
|
That's my point, though - you HAVE to view it in isolation. Like I said, there's an argument to be made but you aren't (weren't) making it.
If your position is that you want to see more - okay, I get that. But when you're looking at the recent two games and trying to lump it into a trend, you're absolutely falling prey to confirmation bias.
Because had you known nothing about Alex Smith (or had Mahomes done the exact same thing), you wouldn't be making these arguments. Those performances by Smith, in isolation, do not support your argument.
You can squint and try to shoehorn them into your preconceived conclusions, but you're not giving them a fair read at that point.
Smith threw for 350+ yards and 4 TDs, including making big plays when we actually had a lead in week 1. He threw for 250 yards and went deep 4 times in a game that we were trailing for 3 minutes and never ran a risk of losing a handle on (seriously, 'Wentz was moving the ball' is the best you've got? How many games was our opponent moving the ball and we simply couldn't answer over the last 4 seasons? Several).
If you saw "the same old Alex" in those games, you're just seeing what you wanted to see. You're trying too hard to fit him into the narrative of that 4 years of football and refusing to consider the possibility that he has changed his approach. You've acknowledged it by insisting that it's not '2 games in isolation' that you're considering.
And that's not the conversation that is being had right now. Yes, Smith needs to do more to establish that this is a new normal but what we have seen for those 2 game is absolutely something different. Besides, the problem with Smith has never been the 80% of his play - by and large the bulk of his snaps have always been sufficient. It's the 3-4 plays/gm he's left on the field that could make all the difference in the world.
Right now he's trying those 3-4 plays and he's hitting them. He's making the throw that he didn't make against Pittsburgh, or he's at least attempting it (the throw he made to Hill against Philly is a perfect example of that). The throw he made to Hunt rather than his shell efforts in the playoff game against NE is another one. He's playing differently right now. Maybe it lasts, maybe it doesn't. But there's no good way to argue that this is just the same ol' Smith. His 'down' game yielded a 4,000 yard pace when the Chiefs never really had an urgent need to spread it out and throw it around. That's a different brand of quarterbacking.