On Tuesday night, Terez A. Paylor of the Kansas City Star reported the surprising news that the Kansas City Chiefs have agreed to trade Alex Smith to the Washington Redskins. According to the NFL Network's Ian Rapoport, picks and a player are involved, and the deal will be finalized tomorrow.
According to ESPN's Adam Schefter, that pick will be a 2018 third-rounder, and possibly more before the deal is completely agreed to in principle. Per Field Yates, the player will be cornerback Kendall Fuller.
While the deal is in place, Kevin Kietzman adds that the trade can't officially be executed until March 14th when the new league year begins.
By trading Smith in the final year of his contract, which included a hard cap number of $20.5 million, the Chiefs will reportedly save $17 million. He performed quite well in 2017, compiling 4,042 passing yards, 26 touchdowns, and a passer rating of 104.7, all career-highs.
Still, it was evident head coach Andy Reid and the organization would eventually turn to 2017 first-round pick Patrick Mahomes, but not everybody was convinced they'd do it this soon. The Texas Tech product flashed a glimpse of his potential in Week 17, completing 22-of-35 passes for 284 yards in a 27-24 win over the Denver Broncos. Mahomes led the game-winning drive in the final minutes.
With Smith's arrival, Kirk Cousins' departure from the Redskins is all but assured.
Chiefs have agreed to trade Qb Alex Smith to the Redskins, as @TerezPaylor reported.
Kirk Cousins now will be leaving Washington.
— Adam Schefter (@AdamSchefter) January 31, 2018
The Cousins drama has been a constant story in the nation's capital over the last few years. After rising as a possible franchise quarterback following the demise of Robert Griffin III, the Redskins and the Michigan State product were never able to agree on a long-term deal.
Cousins and his agent will find no shortage of quarterback-hungry suitors interested in signing the quarterback to the multi-year deal he never received in Washington. Both the Cleveland Browns and Denver Broncos have been mentioned in rumors over the preceding weeks.
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