As the 2018 NFL Draft nears, we're looking back at some of the biggest storylines from drafts in years past. Naturally, the San Francisco 49ers' decision to draft Utah quarterback Alex Smith over California's Aaron Rodgers with the firsts overall pick in 2005 comes to mind as one of the biggest “what if” moments in recent history.

To be fair to the Niners, 21 other teams (including the Minnesota Vikings twice) also passed on Rodgers. The list of players selected before him includes studs such as Antrel Rolle, DeMarcus Ware, Thomas Davis, and Derrick Johnson, but it also includes guys who quickly fizzled out of the league. Even the franchises who ended up taking future Pro Bowlers would go back and draft Rodgers in a heartbeat.

Still, San Francisco continues to receive the most flak for not taking the Green Bay Packers superstar nearly a decade and a half later. Rodgers grew up a 49ers fan in the Bay Area, he shined nearby at Berkeley, and all of the rumors heading into draft day pointed to him ending up with the organization. He wanted to be a 49er; the stars appeared to align.

If criticism of the decision was dying down thanks to Father Time, a spark reignited it thanks to a story released by ESPN's Rob Demovsky almost a year ago. According to Rodgers, Mike Nolan, who was set to begin his first season as San Francisco's head coach, chose Smith over him because of Smith's manners.

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“The story that I heard, and I don't know if it's true or not, but that Mike Nolan said that when he saw Alex open the car door for his mom, then he knew that was the quarterback he wanted. And I said, well I was at lunch with him, my mom wasn't there, and my dad wasn't there.”

Alex smith, Aaron rodgers
Mike Roemer/The Associated Press

The rest is history. Smith struggled early-on with little help around him, and Rodgers became one of, if not the, best quarterbacks in the NFL after sitting behind Brett Favre for three years.

Smith evolved into a solid NFL quarterback, making multiple playoff runs with the Kansas City Chiefs before being traded to the Washington Redskins this offseason. He has shed the “game-manager” label to an extent, but his inability to advance in the postseason is a knock on his legacy. And while it's not fair to Smith, that legacy will always be tied to Rodgers.