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After putting Dwayne Haskins on the bench and watching Kyle Allen go down with an ankle injury, the Washington Football Team turned to Alex Smith as their starting quarterback.
It was Smith’s first time in that role since the 2018 leg injury that threatened his life and career, but he was able to do well enough that Washington won five of his six starts and won the NFC East title. While Smith worked on hand for the team, Smith told Clay Skipper of GQ that he didn’t feel too welcome when he first told the team he would try to play again.
Smith said the team “never thought I would come back” and that “it wasn’t like open arms” when he said he planned to get back into action.
“When I decided to come back, I definitely threw a key into the team’s plan,” said Smith. “They didn’t see it, didn’t want me there, didn’t want me to be part of it, didn’t want me to be on the team, the roster, didn’t want to give me a chance. Mind you, it was a whole new regime, they came.” inside I’m like the leftovers and I’m hurt and I’m this liability Heck no they didn’t want me there At that point as you can imagine everything I had been through I couldn’t have done any less Like it or not, I’m trying this at this point. “
Smith had a guaranteed salary of $ 16 million last season, so there wasn’t much reason for Washington not to give him a chance once he got the go-ahead to play. He will remain under contract for 2021, but the team would only snag $ 8.6 million of his $ 23.3 million cap hit if they decided to move on without him.
There’s no word on their plans, and Smith didn’t say anything definitive in the interview about his plans for playing in 2021, but reiterated that he believes he has more to do on the pitch.