Back in his college days, Alex Smith used to get confused for Aaron Rodgers.
Few would mistake them now.
Whatever slight physical resemblance they might bear, their NFL careers look almost nothing alike.
The two are forever linked because they came out the same year, in the 2005 draft, when the San Francisco 49ers made Smith the No. 1 pick. That then triggered a free fall by Rodgers to No. 24, where the Green Bay Packers picked him.
The five years since have treated them much differently.
Smith went to a bad team, started immediately, struggled, dealt with shoulder injuries in 2007 and 2008, and then opened the 2009 season one in which he had his fifth offensive coordinator in five seasons as a backup to Shaun Hill. Smith replaced Hill halfway through the Oct. 25 game against Houston and started the next three games, going 1-2.
Though Smith has been given a second chance, its unclear whether hell ever be a franchise quarterback.
Meanwhile, Rodgers, who endured an agonizing wait on draft day and rode the bench for the first three years of his pro career, has established himself as the Packers quarterback of the future.
Who knows what would have happened had Rodgers been picked first and been thrust into the same situation as Smith, and whether Smith would have fared better had he been able to ease his way into a starting job like Rodgers did.
It happened, and weve taken different paths, Smith said Wednesday in advance of Sundays game between the Packers and 49ers at Lambeau Field. Here we are meeting up five years later.
Its no secret Rodgers wanted the 49ers to pick him. Not only did he want to be the top pick in the draft, but he wanted to stay close to home and play for his favorite team. Rodgers grew up a 49ers fan in northern California and went to college at Cal. But Rodgers said on Wednesday he knew a week before the draft the 49ers werent going to pick him.
It still hurt when my name wasnt called first, but it also hurt (when it wasnt called) second, third, fourth all the way down to 23, Rodgers said. But I got here and was excited about it. The rest was history.
It was difficult to go through that one day in April, but I think its made all the difference now.
Packers coach Mike McCarthy was San Franciscos offensive coordinator in 2005 and was part of the decision-making process when the 49ers picked Smith over Rodgers, making it awkward at first when the Packers hired him as coach a year later.
When he got here, he said, Hey, I was part of the decision, but Im here now, lets move on, lets move forward together," Rodgers said.
Rodgers has benefited from McCarthys quarterback expertise, while Smith, who had high praise for McCarthy, has been through a carousel of coordinators.
I think most quarterbacks are better off sitting, especially if you have a guy like Brett Favre to learn from, 49ers coach Mike Singletary said. If you can have a veteran quarterback thats toward the end of his career, and youre going to bring in a young guy, and you want to show the young guy how its supposed to be done, I think its a tremendous advantage for him to be able to have that few years on the bench.
Smith not only didnt have that luxury, he went to a bad team that was coming off a 2-14 season and had just hired Mike Nolan as coach. Nolan is gone, having been replaced by Singletary after seven games last season. Slowly, the 49ers have rebuilt their roster, adding playmakers like tight end Vernon Davis and linebacker Patrick Willis, and will come to Green Bay in the playoff picture at 4-5.
Having the benefit of watching last season, when he spent the entire year on injured reserve with a shoulder injury, Smith thinks he has a better chance to succeed now. His numbers havent been overwhelming (six touchdowns, six interceptions and a passer rating of 79.5) this season.
The quarterback position is so unique in the sense that youre dependent on so many people to have a chance to go out on the field and be successful, Smith said. Every individual scenario is unique. Who knows how it would have played out?
"But the bottom line is I came here and had the career Ive had and just glad to be where I am and not looking back regretting anything. Ive got my chance now and just trying to make the most of it.