When the Washington Redskins’ trade for Alex Smith was made public in January, Doug Williams was confident the team had made the right decision. That feeling was bolstered by social media.
The senior vice president of player personnel saw a parade of Kansas City Chiefs players go out of their way to show love to their former teammate and it struck a certain tone.
Tight end Travis Kelce called Smith “one of the best competitors and teammates I’ve ever been around.”
Tackle Laurent Duvernay-Tardif described him as “the definition of a true leader.”
[ Gruden: Alex Smith brings more run-pass options to offense ]
Williams raved about Smith’s football IQ, his accuracy and his ability to extend plays, but it’s the intangibles — traits that a former quarterback might notice more than others — that really caught his attention. The Redskins gave Smith a four-year, $94 million extension, including $71 million guaranteed, after making the trade.
“What Alex is going to bring to us is an element of good leadership,” Williams said. “And you can tell because the first thing he talked about was the locker room. When you talk about a quarterback, the most important thing, does he have the locker room? Does the people that he plays with believe in what he’s doing? I think Alex is that type of guy because he’s proven that.
“When the news got out that he was possibly coming to Washington, all his teammates tweeted about what he meant to them. I think he’ll bring the same type of attitude over here. And that’s one of the things we’re looking for.”
Smith was loquacious during his introductory news conference, but it was clear he’d rather talk about the team and a desire to improve and chase a championship than reflect on his past accomplishments.
The 12-year veteran is coming off a career year in which he threw for 4,042 yards and 26 touchdowns with a 67.5 completion percentage.
“Number one, he’s just a for real individual,” Williams said. “He’s genuine. The type of guy that you realize he loves what he does. He loves his teammates and loves the game.”
[ ‘Don’t answer your phone’: Inside the trade that brought Alex Smith to the Redskins ]
The Redskins have tried to avoid the topic of Kirk Cousins and a moving-forward theme seems to be a common response to questions about the new Minnesota Vikings quarterback. Cousins signed a three-year contract, worth about $84 million, and became the league’s highest-paid player with his contract surpassing the $27.5 million average annual value of the recent five-year, $137.5 million deal signed by quarterback Jimmy Garoppolo with the San Francisco 49ers.
A long-term deal was never reached between the Redskins and Cousins, who played the past two seasons on the franchise tag. Williams said there’s a different feel when your signal-caller is locked up long term.
“I don’t think the fans really understand when you talk about stability,” Williams said, “when you know the guy that’s going to be leading this team is going to be in your locker room the next three, four, five years. That’s a good feeling.
“Now [teammates] can relax and, even during the season, not have to worry about if our fearless leader is going to be here next year.”
Redskins make coaching moves
The Redskins announced the hiring of Phil Rauscher as assistant offensive line coach and the promotion of Kevin O’Connell to passing game coordinator Tuesday.
Rauscher was a part of the Denver Broncos staff for the last three seasons, serving as assistant to coach Vance Joseph in 2017 and as an offensive coaching assistant in 2015 and 2016. He played offensive line at UCLA from 2004 to 2005, was a graduate assistant for the Bruins from 2008 to 2009 and was hired as Dixie State offensive coordinator in 2010.
O’Connell coached the Redskins quarterbacks in 2017, oversaw special projects with the San Francisco 49ers in 2016 and was the Cleveland Browns’ quarterbacks coach in 2015. He played quarterback at San Diego State from 2004 to 2007 and spent time as a player with the Patriots, Lions, Jets, Dolphins and Chargers.
The Redskins ranked 12th in the league with 234.4 passing yards per game, 28th with 90.5 rushing yards and 16th with 324.9 total yards per game. The scoring offense ranked 16th with 21.4 points per game.
Read more on the Redskins:
‘Don’t answer your phone’: Inside the trade that brought Alex Smith to the Redskins
Paul Richardson welcomes the DeSean Jackson comparisons: ‘I look up to him a lot’
Redskins’ Alex Smith explains why he carries giant rocks on the ocean floor