Just days after it was thought that the Cardinals were out of the Alex Smith sweepstakes, rumors have started to swirl once again that that may not be the case. Kent Somers of the Arizona Republic is reporting that the Cardinals are in fact "exploring the possibility of trading" for Smith.
At this point, Somers notes that it is unknown as to what there level of interest is in trading for yet another quarterback. Just two years ago they traded for former Eagles quarterback Kevin Kolb and, as of today, that trade has been a bust.
The Cardinals are impressed by Smith's knowledge of the game and talent, according to Somers, but one has to wonder what it would take to pull a trade of this caliber off. Remember, the Cardinals and 49ers play in the same division and the 49ers would ideally like to ship him off as far away as possible so as to prevent the trade from backfiring on them.
Many reports have indicated that the 49ers will likely receive a 3rd or 4th round pick for Smith, but there has been nothing concrete reported along that front. If that is true, one could assume that the Cardinals would have to give up more in order to prevent the 49ers from trading him outside of the division.
As I have said before, I don't believe this trade will end up happening, nor do I want it to. The Cardinals need to draft a quarterback and build him, not continue to trade for other teams' leftovers. Besides, there is no major difference between how Smith and Kolb play. If new head coach Bruce Arians' plan is to heave the ball down the field, are either of these QBs really great fits?
Nothing can happen until the new league year begins on March 12, but when a trade inevitably goes down, I highly doubt it is between the 49ers and the Cardinals.
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