Alex Smith was the first overall pick in 2005, and the San Francisco 49ers had nothing but Super Bowl ambitions in mind. Fast forward six years and the 49ers have failed to make a Super Bowl appearance, and have also failed to even eclipse the postseason since drafting Smith number one overall.
Take a trip to the desert and find the Arizona Cardinals. A team that three seasons ago was in the Super Bowl, led by Kurt Warner and was one pass away from winning the whole thing. Fast forward four seasons, Warner retires and the Cardinals are stuck in a quarterback limbo, finishing the season with an 5-11 record.
Arizona is a team without leadership and in desperate need of a quarterback. Due to the poor 2010 performance, the Cards' hold the fifth overall pick in this years draft, which leaves a perfect window to grab a young quarterback in this draft class.
The possibility of either Cam Newton or Blaine Gabbert being available at the fifth pick is very likely. But in the same case, there is enough defensive talent in the first five picks to sink a ship. The Cardinals defense has not been the same since Karlos Dansby went to the Dolphins, and the consensus is that Von Miller will be going to Arizona in the first round.
This leaves the Cardinals in a tough position, as they don't have much offensive talent on the team currently with Derek Anderson, Max Hall, John Skelton and Richard Bartel. The entire season was a constant rotation of all of the starters with little consistency, and the starters proved they could not win games.
If the Cardinals do decide to pass on either Newton or Gabbert, they could take a risk and take one of the many quarterbacks projected to go in the second. The issue is that all of those quarterbacks have huge questions surrounding their transition into the NFL, leaving the Cardinals in the same situation with another Hall or Skelton on the team.
An option that Arizona could pursue is the fallen from glory--Alex Smith. Seeing how Smith is going to be an unrestricted free agent once the new CBA is signed, he could be a great alternative to drafting a quarterback.
Can Alex Smith revive his career in the desert?
Although multiple sources indicate there is an offer on the table from San Francisco; free agency will leave him open to sign with whatever team extends him an offer. This could leave the Cardinals with a former first round pick that so far has not worked out in San Fran, but has shown flashes of excellence. In several games, Smith has been able to show that he could be a starter in the NFL, and that he could win games given the chance.
Maybe Smith has lacked the proper coaching, as the 49ers have had a revolving door of head coaches while he was the quarterback there. Ken Whisenhunt was able to lead his team to the Super Bowl, and could be Smith's savior.
Not to mention that Smith would have an incredible receiving corps, with Larry Fitzgerald as his primary target. It would be hard to imagine any quarterback complaining or struggling when a target like Fitzgerald is running down the field on every down, and Smith could find excellent chemistry.
Unlike most of the NFL and most San Francisco fans, I'm not ready to give up on Alex Smith. Call me a homer because Utah was my first college, but I still think that Smith has enough in him to turn his career around in the right setting.
It's time for Arizona to take a gamble to get back onto the map, and Smith could provide that spark to make the Cardinals contenders again.
