Alex Smith has had a good season, and probably enjoyed the most success as a starting quarterback for the 49ers last season. That being said, it's probably unwise that Smith made these comments about Carolina Panthers quarterback Cam Newton.
Eric Branch of the San Francisco Chronicle filed this report.
"I could absolutely care less on yards per game," Smith said. "I think that is a totally overblown stat because if you’re losing games in the second half, guess what, you’re like the Carolina Panthers and you’re going no-huddle the entire second half. Yeah, Cam Newton threw for a lot of 300-yard games. That’s great. You’re not winning, though."
Granted, this was more of an overall diatribe against QB stats. But bringing the name of a fellow QB in there was probably unwise.
Smith has had a good season, and has proven he can be a decent enough game manager in high-stakes football games. That being said, unless Smith starts putting up big performances or greatly increases his arm strength, he has little chance of being a better quarterback than Newton. You'd be hard-pressed to find many NFL experts who would rate Smith over Newton right now.
Sadly, the 49ers do not play the Panthers in the 2012 regular season. Based on these quotes, it would've been a fun matchup.
Talk about Smith with 49ers fans over at Niners Nation. Tallk about Newton with Panthers fans over at Cat Scratch Reader.
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