ASHBURN, Va. Washington Football Team quarterback Alex Smith knows he must overcome one major obstacle in his quest to recover from a horrific leg injury.
He needs to be hit.
“I thought that more than I can probably say,” Smith said. “That has been in the back of my head in this whole process. I need to get out and ride; I need to know that, apparently, my leg is strong enough to take it.”
It is not certain when Smith will actually be in a position to take a hit on his right leg. He broke his tibia and fibula in a November 2018 game against Houston, leading to 17 surgeries, near death, near amputation and what many felt was the end of his career.
But Washington activated Smith physically unable to execute list Sunday, putting him one step closer to an unannounced comeback. There are more steps he needs to take. He has participated in 7-on-7 work over the past two days.
“Today was the best I could feel there,” Smith said.
Coach Ron Rivera said Wednesday that there is no schedule for when Smith will graduate up to nine defenders in a drill and, ultimately, full teamwork. Washington wants to see how he handles a situation for rush hour treatment and how quickly he can respond when he needs to avoid problems.
For Smith, it goes one step further with confidence what happens when he is hit. Without pre-season games, Smith said he might have to simulate being tackled in practice, just to reduce his spirits.
But he said he “was determined not to let fear dictate my decision-making. No doubt there is, but, for me [it’s] to choose to pass. “
Before he reaches that point, there’s more that Smith needs to show. During seven-on-seven work, he looked like a mediocre quarterback. In the first two days of camp he has for the most part just been; Rivera loves how he synchronizes his feet with his eyes – improving accuracy. Rivera referred to him Tuesday as a cruel veteran and that turns out to be the case. On Wednesday, his three snaps in seven-on-seven red zone work presented quick decisions and completed throws, mostly within 10 yards of the line. On Tuesday, he snatched one throw over the middle, which allowed him to pump his fist, the one time he let go of emotion.
But he is also not against a passport. What remains the key.
“The biggest thing for him is always about the footwork – the fast feet, making quick decisions, things like that,” Rivera said. “We’re in there and we need to see how he moves.”
Rivera said they will make him back in 11-on-11 work. But he wants him to face nine defenders at some point so they can simulate a pass rush for him – and he can know where the pressure is coming from when the rushers are unblocked – without the threat of hitting.
“So we can watch his movements as he escapes,” Rivera said. “With him, everything is a process; everything is a step forward; everything is about his foot speed, his speed, his decision-making. He has done a great job.
“We are not trying to rush anyone; therefore there is no timeline. We want to make sure that if he has to play, he can protect himself.”
Rivera said he and Smith have talked a few times about what they want to see – especially how Smith protects himself.
“For me to sit there and say what his physical risks are – I’m not the doctor,” Rivera said. “We’re listening to what the doctor told us. You never want to put a player at risk, and that’s what I’re concerned about – that I do not endanger him. I just want to make sure – based on what I’ve seen, based on from what I’ve heard – we can sit there and make the right decision whether to play him or not. “
Smith also has drop foot – a result of neurological or muscle damage – and his right foot can be difficult to lift and can slip. That’s why he said he should always wear an AFO brace to stabilize his foot. Whether that hinders his ability to escape into the bush remains to be seen.
Dallas linebacker Jaylon Smith wore a brace due to drop foot in the 2017 season, but removed it for next year. The Denver Nuggets’ Michael Porter, Jr., also developed drop foot and wears a brace.
“That’s something that was a death sentence for your career 10, 15 years ago,” Smith said. “To let guys out and play in an AFO, to see Jaylon Smith go out and do what he did as a young boy, to see what Michael Porter Jr. is doing right now with an AFO. Those guys are inspiring for me to see if I can do this. I feel like pushing some level of this as far as it can go for whoever is behind it. “
Smith said he feels more comfortable every day as he spends time on the field. He also knows that he has traveled quite a distance just to reach this point. He admitted he had “why me” moments when he was in the hospital. He would wake up every morning, remember what happened and then move on to his new reality.
“It strikes your kind every day again, like, no, this is really real,” he said, “and it does not come back; there is no going back; this is what I am ahead of for the rest of my life. That “Emotions were those first months, and it took a while to get over it. That was part of, apparently, being comfortable with what my life, my new normal, is and then moving forward.”
But it’s not like it was a smooth journey.
“You build a lot of walls in your head to what you can ever do again,” he said. “And then finally you get over that cream, I think, and start trying to slowly knock those walls down when they come. It took a long, long time before I could even see my leg.”
And, now, he’s back on an NFL field and trying to win a roster spot. He has been happy with his progressions, his execution of handoffs.
“The next Progression is definitely the unchoreographed stuff,” he said. “The time the bag breaks and you get pushed back. There are a lot of different scenarios that come up. It’s hard to drill all those things. Just get back to a point where it breaks, you have what it takes. takes there? to save the play, to find success, whatever the outcome then, escape things like that in the bag. “
If he can show that, then Smith can enter the quarterback league. For now, it’s been Dwayne Haskins with the starters.
“I’ve been playing a quarterback in the back of my head for a long time. You’re wondering if I can do it again, and it’s still out there,” Smith said. “And you get closer and closer, I think, it just feels even more; it could be like running a marathon and getting closer to the end of the race. I think even more, that competitiveness kicks in; and I want to see if I can do it. “
But, he said, one step at a time. He does not want to rush the process.
“It will reveal itself,” Smith said. “We are filmed every day, we watch tape every day. It’s always obvious, I think, if you can do it or not – for everyone. I do not think it will be different for me.”
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