Haskins Should Be No. 2 QB

Alex Smith shouldn't be playing. Kyle Allen played, got injured, got cleared but didn't return & Dwayne Haskins called out sick!

Alex Smith deserves NFL Comeback Player of the Year. He’s worthy of all the praise and kind remarks. If your eyes weren’t misty when the Washington quarterback returned on Sunday versus Los Angeles two years after a horrible injury that threatened life and limb, then you’re an uncaring robot with even less sympathy than Siri and Alexa combined.

But, Smith shouldn’t be playing. While the risk of injury looks less likely, the level of play was rusty in the Rams loss. Most telling was three of his six sacks were caused by Smith hesitating and moving up in the pocket looking for time rather than throwing the ball away. It’s all about timing and Smith doesn’t have it after sparse work as the team’s third-string passer.

Washington could do little with Smith. Then again, it has done little with all three passers in the 1-4 start. Dwayne Haskins couldn’t find alternate receivers or hit simple passes at times. Kyle Allen ran for a touchdown in his short stint against Los Angeles, but his 9 of 13 passes gained 74 yards and were never downfield so defenses packed hard up front. That means more sacks and no running game.

Smith was 9 of 17 for 34 yards. A 2.2-yard average versus Rams quarterback Jared Goff’s 10.2? I know America is big into social distancing, but six feet apart doesn’t pertain to passes. It’s not even a dink-and-dunk offense. It’s tossing to running backs who couldn’t clear the line.

Running backs J.D. McKissic and Antonio Gibson combined for 11 receptions. Unless the running back is Christian McCaffrey, that’s not the offense you want. The rain certainly didn’t help, but Washington offensive coordinator Scott Turner certainly figured Smith couldn’t get the ball downfield.

None of this is Smith’s fault. He was supposed to be a tutor this season, not spot reliever. Smith isn’t Sonny Jurgensen in the twilight of the latter’s career when bailing out Billy Kilmer in the 1970s.

Smith was being saved for late season when the team was hopelessly out of the playoffs and needed some reason for people to watch games. He would get that exit parade into the sunset while making people temporarily forget what an awful team this is. The defense is so bad fans are nostalgic for last season.

Greg Manusky – please pick up the white courtesy phone. You’re still forgotten, but at least forgiven.

Anyway, Smith spent training camp just ramping up. Getting some time on his feet, testing the leg that he nearly lost. Gaining confidence. Trying to convince the coaching staff not to place him on injured reserve. He didn’t want to go out like Joe Theismann.

Smith gained little reps and was never hit in practice. While Smith endured the six sacks well, he can’t keep taking that type of pounding and not having what looks like another awful season be remember for something even worse and needless.

Sure, demoting Smith to third string means Dwayne Haskins might play again should Allen get hurt. Haskins’ return really wouldn’t be the worst thing. Amid trade rumors that seem silly, Haskins could gain some confidence against the season’s softest stretch. After all, Washington does want to see Haskins’ succeed – right?

Washington shouldn’t take a sweet story and sour it like seemingly everything else this franchise touches. Smith needs to return to third string.

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Rick Snider is an award-winning sports writer who has covered Washington sports since 1978. He first wrote about the Washington football team in 1983 before becoming a beat writer in 1993. Snider currently writes for several national and international publications and is a Washington tour guide. Follow Rick on Twitter at @Snide_Remarks