Redskins: Alex Smith must know what he’s trying to prove in comeback

He could have turned away.

The world wouldn’t think any less of him for it. But eight months removed from his catastrophic leg injury suffered against the Houston Texans, an injury that nearly lost him his leg, Washington Redskins quarterback Alex Smith aims to get back to football. And not an inch lower.

The sentimental undertones of any comeback make Smith’s comeback bid worth watching and supporting. But his route back to the Redskins seems to be closed off, or in the process of shutting for good. The Redskins selected Dwayne Haskins in the first round of the 2019 NFL Draft, and for the span of four years, he’ll be a much cheaper quarterback on his rookie deal, with the developmental upside that a veteran like Smith lacks.

Smith could, in theory, return as a backup, but teams don’t pay upwards of $20 million for a backup, and the Redskins could just re-sign Case Keenum or Colt McCoy to fill that role. What’s more likely is that the Redskins release the veteran around 2021, regardless of the progress of his comeback, when they can cut ties for a lesser sum of dead cap; just around $10.8 million.

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Smith, as a free agent, would then make his pitch to play again to other teams. But in a league where the younger generation of quarterbacks is growing every year, where the spots are filling up faster, and where contracts are shortening so that quarterbacks can double-dip in an ever-inflating market, it seems that the odds are against Smith again.

By that time, he’ll be 36 years old, nearing the age of 37, coming off a leg injury that could affect his mechanics; without the normal strength in his leg, his weight transfer won’t be as smooth. Former Redskins quarterback Joe Theismann noted as a reason he couldn’t come back. Smith could compensate for that shortcoming by forcing more throws, thus sapping the life out of his arm. The leg could get stronger; Smith has at least a year to make it happen, and Theismann didn’t have the technology available today. But still, Smith has to learn to walk, and then run, and then move again, before he can re-hash his footwork.

Let’s say Smith does make it through this recovery. Let’s say that, in 2021, he feels ready to mount a comeback. The Redskins would likely release him, unless Haskins’ first two years end up being astronomically worse that expectations suggest. And then, on the free agent market, Smith might desire starting opportunities. Would he get them? Maybe an outside bid, from a team stuck in quarterback purgatory. But how can Smith say that signing him, at age 37, after his life-altering injury, two years removed from football, will rescue that team from the depths of limbo?

If Smith doesn’t prioritize starting opportunities, then the job becomes easier; many teams would be willing to pay for his leadership and mentorship skills as a backup. But even then, what’s keeping Smith from getting a head start on his coaching career? That would be the easier choice.

But therein lies the root of this complex conflict. What is Smith’s motivation? It isn’t greed; he has more than enough in guarantees already. It isn’t selfishness; Smith has always been anything but. Is he trying to prove something? To himself, that he can come back from this, when others have failed? To the world, that they shouldn’t forget about him? Or does he simply love the game of football, have some football left in the tank, and refuse to give up on the slightest chance?

Whatever the case, Smith must know what he’s trying to prove, and what his end goal is, if he wishes to get back to his sport for the past two decades. If he’s working off of instinct, off of the ingrained will to ready himself for his next bout, then he may soon find that his work has no meaning. For Smith, the knowledge of the goal, and the awareness of a purpose, is a necessity. Because once he loses sight of that goal, it’s so much easier to walk away.

Buried underneath a mountain of obstacles, forced away from the bright spotlight of the NFL’s stage by a debilitating injury, Smith won’t be easy to remember. But if he knows what he’s trying to prove, and if he withstands all of the factors working against him, and finds his way back to the football field, in spite of being all but gone, then…

Then he will be impossible to forget.