Mystery Team May or May Not Have Deal in Place with 49ers for Quarterback Alex Smith

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In news with implications that could count twofold for some
Eagles fans, there are currently a set of conflicting rumors around the San
Francisco 49ers and their coveted property, quarterback Alex Smith.

CBSSports.com’s Jason La Canfora reported on Sunday (via
Deadspin) that a trade for Smith is “effectively complete,” although a swap
cannot be finalized until the new league year begins on March 12, and which
team has allegedly agreed to deal is unknown. On the other hand, Matt Barrows
of the Sacramento Bee (via ProFootballTalk) indicates it’s all posturing from San
Francisco’s end.

ESPN.com's Adam Schefter chimed in on Monday, painting San Francisco as confident a trade will take place at some point.

We have to agree with PFT’s take on this one, which is without
Smith’s destination being named, it’s hard to regard the report he’s all-but-traded
as definite. Perhaps the 49ers are trying to drum up the price. For his part, La Canfora has not revised his story.

But it is sort of interesting from a Philadelphia
perspective. The likeliest landing spot for Smith might be the Kansas City
Chiefs, who are confirmed to be looking for a QB, and in turn have already inquired
about Nick Foles.
If Foles were to be dealt – not believed to be happening at
this point – Kansas City makes the most sense because Andy Reid would probably
be willing to give up the most.

Obviously if Kansas City can be linked to Smith in any way,
that could drive Foles’ value down. Foles could also be the Chiefs’ leverage on
the Niners, or Plan B if they are unable to pry the first-overall pick of 2005
away from San Fran at their price.

Of course, there are plenty of fans who wouldn’t mind seeing
the Eagles make a play for Smith themselves. Given what the 49ers will be
asking for, and Smith’s up-and-mostly-down career, I’m not sure the Birds should
have any serious interest in the soon-to-be 29 year old – and by all
appearances, they have none.

The story is worth following to see what develops though,
because the far-reaching impact of a trade could potentially be felt here. The
49ers will almost certainly wind up moving Smith this offseason one way or the
other due to the ascension of Colin Kapernick to starter.

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