The San Francisco 49ers are in the Super Bowl just one year after losing to the New York Giants in the NFC Championship game.
The biggest change from the team that lost to this one now is the quarterback. The man who led the San Francisco renaissance, the man that quarterbacked the first winning team for the franchise in eight years and led them to the championship game is now on the sidelines-and you'll never hear a peep from him. That man is Alex Smith, and he is one of the biggest reasons why the 49ers are in the Super Bowl.
Earlier this season with the 49ers sitting at 6-2, Smith was sidelined after suffering a concussion against the Rams, forcing coach Jim Harbaugh to bring in Colin Kaepernick. The game ended in a tie and the following week Smith had to sit out, giving Kaepernick his first start in which he threw for 243 yards with two touchdowns in a 32-7 win over Chicago.
A controversy was started when Harbaugh said after the game: "we have two quarterbacks that have a hot hand", essentially tossing aside the old adage that no player in the NFL should lose their job to an injury.
But before the 2012 season recap for Smith, it is important to look at his whole time with the 49ers to truly see what he means to the team. He was drafted over Aaron Rodgers as the number one pick in the draft in 2005 and was a big disappointment, especially when everyone saw Rodgers lead the Packers to the Super Bowl.
Smith showed skills on the field, but could never find a consistent rhythm, as he was given six different offensive coordinators in his first six seasons. Finally, in 2011, Harbaugh was brought in and instead of going out and bringing in other quarterbacks he convinced Smith to stay with the team and he signed a one-year $5 million contract. It paid off big time for the 49ers as they had the best season in a decade, going 13-3 while winning the AFC West.
The confidence in Smith, as well as the play calling of offensive coordinator Greg Roman allowed Smith to have the best statistical season of his career, setting highs in nearly every category. He threw for 3,144 yards, reaching 3,000 yards for the first time in his career, with 17 touchdowns and a league-low five interceptions while completing over 60 percent of his passes.
Smith played well in the playoffs and got the 49ers to the NFC championship game before falling to the Giants, passing for 196 yards and two touchdowns in the 20-17 overtime loss. Following the 2011 season Smith was a free agent again and once the team showed interest in signing with Manning, he had to come to terms with the possibility of leaving. Instead, Manning signed with the Broncos and Smith returned to the 49ers with a three-year contract worth $24 million.
Everything seemed secure for Smith in San Francisco, but as they say, "if you want to make God laugh, tell him your plans."
So halfway through the season, with the 49ers 7-2 and looking like one of the best teams in the NFL, Harbaugh made the tough choice to go with Kaepernick over Smith. At the time of the switch, Smith was healthy enough to play and was ranked third in the NFL in passer rating (104.1), while leading the league in completion percentage (70%), making the move even more dramatic in the eyes of some in the media.
Harbaugh took a lot of flak for the move, but here is the team now, getting ready to start the Super Bowl. The most amazing thing about the whole situation though? Smith never made a peep. Sure, there were a few quotes at the beginning when the situation was confusing, but once Kaepernick took hold of the starting job, Smith was there to be a mentor.
Things easily could have turned badly, as it did with teams like the Jets, who also had quarterback issues. Instead of becoming fractured, the team came together around Kaepernick while still supporting Smith and the results have been "super".
Kaepernick has proven to be a game changer for the 49ers, and was a huge part of Sunday's 28-24 win over the Falcons in the NFC Championship Game, throwing for 233 yards and one touchdown. He had a much different game from the one he played against the Packers, proving he can be a running and throwing quarterback.
Against Green Bay, Kaepernick had a coming out party, setting a record with 181 rushing yards to go along with 263 yards and two touchdowns while also adding another two scores on the ground.
During the regular season Kaepernick went 6-2 as a starter and had a passer rating of 98.7 with 13.1 yards per rushing attempt. The Ravens will need to contain Kaepnerick for a chance to win in New Orleans, or it could be the Packers game all over again.
Even though he played in parts of 10 games, Smith still put up some solid stats for the 49ers this season, throwing for 1,737 yards and 13 touchdowns with just five interceptions. Following the NFC championship game in which the team came back from a 17-0 deficit, Smith was quoted as saying he 'couldn't be happier' the team made it to the Super Bowl.
"I'm so happy, man," Smith told Mike Silver of Yahoo! Sports in the wake of San Francisco's 28-24 victory over the Falcons on Sunday. "This is so surreal. It's such a crazy time, such a crazy moment. Obviously, it's been a unique year, and it would be great to be in there. But I couldn't be happier. This is a great group of guys, and they're all Super Bowl bound. I'm just so happy for all of them."
The biggest notable quarterback change in midseason came for another Super Bowl team as well. In 2001, New England quarterback Drew Bledsoe was hit hard by Jets linebacker Mo Lewis and suffered internal bleeding, forcing backup Tom Brady in the game. Brady led the Patriots to wins in 11 of the 14 games he started as well as the Super Bowl that year and never looked back.
The victory over the Falcons likely gives Harbaugh the "genius" title for sitting Smith for Kaepernick, but everyone in the organization knows that San Francisco would not be playing in New Orleans without Alex Smith.
