See how Alex Smith performs in the red zone compared to rest of AFC West

[beach tribe]

It was a breezy, borderline chilly, Sunday afternoon in mid-November last season. The 7-2 Kansas City Chiefs were at home against the five-loss Tampa Bay Buccaneers, rolling with a five-game winning streak that included victories over the New Orleans Saints at home and the Oakland Raiders and Carolina Panthers on the road.

It was also ... confession time ... my first visit to Arrowhead Stadium.

I will say, it was an experience I’ll never forget. The atmosphere, the tailgating, the fans ... it was all amazing. But, at the same time, it was just about as frustrating a game as you’ll ever see.

The funny thing is, though, Alex Smith had your typical, average Alex Smith performance. The Chiefs QB threw for 261 yards, had one touchdown and one rushing touchdown, along with one interception. Pretty so-so, but that seems to be then norm for No. 11. Spencer Ware rushed for 69 yards on 17 attempts, a stat line that pretty much was his average performance on the ground in 2016.

I did some digging and found the postgame column of The Kansas City Star’s Sam Mellinger. You don’t have to read too much to remind yourself of how that game panned out.

What could’ve been another ugly Chiefs win turned into an ugly-as-vomit 19-17 loss to the mediocre Buccaneers at home on Sunday the moment quarterback Alex Smith executed a bad throw, poorly leading to an interception in the end zone when even a field goal would’ve probably been enough to win.

The biggest frustration, aside from the inability of the offense to score, was the red zone performance by Smith. Most notably, Smith threw a crucial interception from Tampa Bay’s six-yard line (the one referenced by Sam above) with KC trailing 12-10 early in the fourth quarter.

I won’t spend too much time dwelling on the Smith interception, but it appeared to be a predetermined read, where Smith failed to notice Chris Conte waiting in the middle of the end zone.

And as a Chiefs fan, you probably feel that this missed throw in the tweet below by Smith is one you see every Sunday.

Click here to see Tigerupyourbutt's lover boy make one of the throws that led to his AFCW ranking:
https://www.arrowheadpride.com/2017/...red-zone-stats

The Chiefs scored in the red zone 46 percent of the time in 2016, which was 26th-best in the league. That’s about 10 percent worse than Kansas City’s red zone conversion rate in 2015.

Plus, what really makes the red zone inefficiency by Smith & Co. so frustrating is that the offensive line for the Chiefs did a pretty good job in 2016. According to Pro Football Focus, the Chiefs offensive line allowed the fewest pressures in 2016 (they tied with the Raiders) and Smith saw the lowest percentage of pressures on third down.

For an offense that operates like the Chiefs, scoring in the red zone has to be one of the most important parts of their game. Minus Tyreek Hill running wild throughout the field, there isn’t a big-play threat out there. It’s reasonable to contribute the lack of a play maker to Smith’s inability or unwillingness to take shots down the field.

So, if you were asked a trivia question on where Smith ranked in red zone passing performance in the AFC West in 2016, you’d be a winner if you answered with ... “dead last.”
2016 AFC West Red Zone QB Stats
Quarterback Passing Completion % Passing Yards TD INT Passer Rating Yards/Attempt Rushing Yards
Derek Carr 44/90 47% 306 19 1 91.9 3.4 -7
Philip Rivers 45/96 47% 333 22 2 86.5 3.5 1
Trevor Siemian 28/55 51% 164 10 1 89 3 5
Alex Smith 29/63 46% 167 11 3 72.7 2.7 51
Statistics via Pro Football Reference

The only real edge that Smith has over the other three quarterbacks actually has nothing to do with his passing game. He has 51 rushing yards; the other three have -6 combined rushing yards. Congratulations.

Trevor Siemian threw for one less touchdown than Smith did in the red zone in 2016 but had eight less pass attempts. Smith’s passer rating was 16.3 percentage points worse than the next-best rating, owned by Siemian (89).

The Chiefs are at the point now where no one reasonably expects them to be any better than an average offense so long as Smith is behind center. The AFC West won’t be an easy division to play in in 2017 by any means, and if the Chiefs want to compete for a playoff run, improvement in the red zone should be one of their highest priorities.

[TigeRRUppeRRcut]

Originally Posted by beach tribe

WTF are you talking about?

I've been a fan of this team since I was 8?

You are not even a Chiefs fan, you're a Smith fan.

You'll go when he goes, guaranteed.

You're a fair weather fan. You disappear when this team loses.
Good on you, cupcake.

[TigeRRUppeRRcut]

Time to change the Dorsey picture, cupcake.

[Hammock Parties]

Six months of these death throes from Tiger are going to be absolutely epic.

The fewer TDs Smith throws, the lower his QB rating sinks, the more boisterous his spasms will be.

[RunKC]

Originally Posted by beach tribe

WTF are you talking about?

I've been a fan of this team since I was 8?

You are not even a Chiefs fan, you're a Smith fan.

You'll go when he goes, guaranteed.

He'll be here trying to knock Mahomes at every chance in his first start bc he is an Alex fan, not a Chiefs fan.

Everyone already knows

[beach tribe]

Originally Posted by TigerUppercut

You're a fair weather fan. You disappear when this team loses.
Good on you, cupcake.

How the **** would know?

I was HERE for Herm. For Matt Cassel. For Damon Huard.

I was begging the board for down and distance, pumping German quarters into a PC in an internet Cafe on the Reeperbahn during a 2-14 season, mother ****er.

I have been here through thick and thin.

A few years from now, I'll be able to say I was here for Alex Smith's sorry ass....and you won't be here, bitch.

[Hammock Parties]

Originally Posted by RunKC

He'll be here trying to knock Mahomes at every chance in his first start bc he is an Alex fan, not a Chiefs fan.

Everyone already knows

He won't be, actually.

He's going to be banned through November of next year if he loses both his bets.

[TigeRRUppeRRcut]

Cute avatar, Geno. You must be so awesome at bets and predictions

[TigeRRUppeRRcut]

Originally Posted by Hammock Parties

He won't be, actually.

He's going to be banned through November of next year if he loses both his bets.

Kareem, Ware, Kelce, Tyreek, Conley, and Escobar say otherwise.

Red Zone efficiency will be much, much improved.

[beach tribe]

Originally Posted by TigerUppercut

Time to change the Dorsey picture, cupcake.

Maybe I should change it to a drunk, washed up, skank ****er.

[beach tribe]

Originally Posted by TigerUppercut

Kareem, Ware, Kelce, Tyreek, Conley, and Escobar say otherwise.

Red Zone efficiency will be much, much improved.

Yeah, but we'll still have Smith, so....

[Hammock Parties]

Originally Posted by TigerUppercut

Kareem, Ware, Kelce, Tyreek, Conley, and Escobar say otherwise.

Red Zone efficiency will be much, much improved.

4/6 of those players were here last year.

So a rookie RB and a bust TE are going to magically make Alex Smith productive in the red zone.

Riiiiight.

[beach tribe]

Has there been a more blind, idiotic, and hated poster than this stupid ****?

I can't think of one.

Way to go.

[beach tribe]

Originally Posted by Hammock Parties

4/6 of those players were here last year.

So a rookie RB and a bust TE are going to magically make Alex Smith productive in the red zone.

Riiiiight.

Hell, doesn't he constantly blame some of those guy for Alex's downfalls?

[Mr. Plow]

Originally Posted by TigerUppercut

Red Zone efficiency will be much, much improved.

So you're saying Smith won't be the QB this year? Weird.

[Sweet Daddy Hate]

Originally Posted by RunKC

I am old enough to remember Tigerclown saying "in Dorsey we trust!" and even having it above his avatar.

Boy has that story changed. Now Dorsey "went behind Clark's back" and drafted Mahomes which was why he was fired.

This poster is so hilarious to read. The denial and butt hurt is so so strong

You know what the greatest part is?

The more weapons you give Smith, the shittier he performs. Looking for a completely dog-assed, ultra-low confidence year from Capn' Franchisepantsharter.

It's gonna' be Sweet.