Alex Smith was 6-2 as the San Francisco 49ers
' starter in 2012 when a Week 10 concussion opened the door for Colin Kaepernick. Smith recovered, but he never got his job back, and he watched from the sideline as Kaepernick took the team to Super Bowl XLVII. Years later, Smith has finally explained how that felt.
"Again, I was leading the NFL in passer rating, and it was like, all you're seeing is what's in front of you and then wham, concussion," Smith said on Bussin' With The Boys
. "And then Kap steps in and rolls, man.
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"… Well, being benched, quote unquote, with like the hot hand. Dude, the only time I stepped foot on the Super Bowl field was for the coin toss because, like, I was still team captain, right? And like how humiliating that was, right? And to watch the Super Bowl pass you by from the sidelines, I felt like the guy that had been like at a slot machine, like putting in coins, and got up for a second; the next guy sat down and hit the [expletive] jackpot, right? It was so frustrating. But at the same time, as I do, we all signed up to play team sports, man. We didn't sign up to play tennis…"
Alex Smith's last game against the St. Louis Rams, back in 2012, ended up changing the direction of his career
. He suffered a concussion in the second quarter. Colin Kaepernick, whom the 49ers had drafted a year earlier, replaced him and ended up tying that game at 24-24.
Alex Smith's raw reflection on that pivotal benching reveals the untold emotional toll of losing your job on football's biggest stage. Subscribe for the stories behind the headlines that shaped NFL history.
Smith hadn't been struggling at all. He had San Francisco at 6-2, having thrown for 1,731 yards, 13 touchdowns and five interceptions until that injury.
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Still, the injury gave the 49ers a reason to go with Kaepernick. Smith spoke to the media after learning of head coach Jim Harbaugh's decision.
"I mean, it sucks. You state your case with your play, and I felt I did that. I feel like the only thing I did to lose my job was get a concussion," Smith told reporters (h/t CSN Bay Area).
Smith was medically cleared after some time, but Harbaugh didn't rush him back. Kaepernick started again against the New Orleans Saints. He never gave the job back. He helped the 49ers finish 11-4-1 and reach the playoffs, including the Super Bowl. In that game, against the Baltimore Ravens, San Francisco fell behind early and lost 34-31.
Smith was traded to the Kansas City Chiefs in 2013. By the time he lost the job to Kaepernick, it had already become apparent that the latter taking over was inevitable. However, a young Colin Kaepernick still found a mentor in the veteran QB.
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"Whether Alex is with us or he's somewhere else next season, he's been a great teammate to me," Kaepernick told NFL Network in 2013. "[He's] been a great friend, a great mentor. … I think the biggest thing with Alex is he was always in my ear, making sure I was seeing the defense. Did I see safeties do this? Did I see the rotation? Did I see things like that? [He was] just making sure I have mental clarity when I step on the field."
Smith lost his job to a concussion, and Kaepernick turned that opening into a Super Bowl run that Smith could only watch from the sideline.
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The post "How Humiliating": Ex-49ers QB Alex Smith Makes Honest Admission About Being Benched for Colin Kaepernick During Super Bowl
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