Alex Smith: Washington’s organizational ‘drama’ impacts play on field

Alex Smith said something on Wednesday that many Washington fans have understood for two decades.

The retired quarterback who played two seasons in Washington told Rich Eisen that the “noise,” “distractions,” “turmoil” and “drama” surrounding the organization does, in fact, impact the team’s play on the field. 

“How could it not?” Smith asked rhetorically when Eisen asked him whether the dysfunction with the Commanders franchise affects on-field results. 

“There’s been historically a lot of drama there,” Smith added. “There’s a lot of turmoil, a lot of distractions. So to say that the stuff going on in the building doesn’t infiltrate the locker room or out on the field would be crazy.”

The comments from Smith on the “Rich Eisen Show” came after the radio host asked Smith about his advice for Carson Wentz. Perhaps the most revealing part of Smith’s response was his immediate awkward laugh and brief silence, as he contemplated how to phrase his upcoming answer. 

“It’s tough. I think you’ve got to try to eliminate the noise there. There’s a lot of noise,” Smith said. “There’s a lot of distractions — that entire organization, everything surrounding it — and, obviously, deservedly. It’s been flawed for the last 20 years. There’s a lot of stuff going on there, a lot of distractions, and it makes it difficult to kind of focus in on the football.”

“There’s a lot of distractions in that entire organization.”

Asked Alex Smith what his advice for new #Commanders QB @cj_wentz would be — and he revealed how off-field issues crept into his game day focus in Washington.

Fascinating chat with the 16-year #NFL vet: pic.twitter.com/VxpsVVxQbd

— Rich Eisen Show (@RichEisenShow) March 30, 2022

Smith came to Washington in 2018 via trade from the Kansas City Chiefs. The former San Francisco 49ers No. 1 overall pick restarted his career in Kansas City under Andy Reid. But after Patrick Mahomes sat the bench his rookie season in 2017, the Chiefs shipped Smith off to D.C. 

Smith played well in his first season in Burgundy and Gold, leading the team to a 6-4 record in the first half of 2018 before his gruesome, season-ending injury against the Texans. Smith missed the entire 2019 season as he battled to keep his leg. But he returned in 2020, leading Washington to a 5-1 record in his starts that propelled the team to the NFC East title, to win the Comeback Player of the Year award. 

Smith said Wentz is at a “make-or-break” moment in his career and that the 2022 season with the Commanders could be his last “chance.” The Commanders traded multiple Day 2 draft selections for Wentz, who will be on his third team in three seasons. After flaming out in Philadelphia and struggling mightily in 2020, Wentz had a bounce back campaign statistically with Indianapolis last year, but his late-season struggles led to the Colts’ late-season collapse that cost them a playoff spot. 

“This is a team that has been almost desperate to try and get a franchise quarterback these last few years, and can he be that?” Smith said. “He’s got to lock in. Like I said, he can’t get distracted. This is an opportunity, he’s got to go make the most of it.”