KANSAS CITY — Sources reported Wednesday that former University of Utah and San Fransisco 49ers quarterback Alex Smith will be traded to the Kansas City Chiefs.

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Alex Smith traded to the Kansas City Chiefs

Former Utah Utes quarterback Alex Smith may have found a new home with the Kansas City Chiefs, according to sources close to the trade.

The 49ers reportedly will give up Smith to the Chiefs for second-round picks in 2013 and 2014, which has to be pleasing to an organization that was just looking at cutting the 2005 No. 1 draft pick just a few years ago.

Under the right system, Smith has proven that he can be successful. With Jim Harbaugh at the helm for the 49ers the past two years, Smith has been, well, extraordinary.

In 2011, Smith threw for 3,144 yards and 17 touchdowns with only five interceptions, enough for a 90.7 passer rating. In the postseason he was even better, finishing with a 101.0 passer rating. Oh, and there's this little stat: "Smith led the Niners to four fourth-quarter comeback wins, tying a franchise record held by some guy named Montana" (NFL.com).

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For an encore, Smith was on pace to have a career season in 2012. 6-2 as a starting quarterback, Smith had the third best passer rating at 104.1, all while nearly setting an NFL passing record for completion percentage in an NFC Offensive Player of the Week performance against the Arizona Cardinals. The next game, Smith suffered a concussion, while his backup, Colin Kaepernick shined in the spotlight, taking the 49ers to the Super Bowl before eventually losing to the Baltimore Ravens.

So if the trade between the 49ers and the Chiefs comes to fruition on March 12, here are three reasons why Kansas City is a good fit for Alex Smith.

• Andy Reid
  Smith had seven offensive coordinators in eight seasons in San Fransisco, but never really meshed until he found a coach that understood his strengths and built an offense around those.

New Chiefs head man Andy Reid is an offensive genius, choosing Smith to lead his version of the West Coast offense that worked well in Philadelphia, a system similar to the one that the 49ers used in Smith's final two seasons in San Fransisco.

Reid will be able to develop and cater an offense towards Smith's strengths, much like he did with Donovan McNabb.

1. Run game support
   Chiefs running back Jamaal Charles led the AFC with 1,509 rushing yards in 2012. As was the case in San Fransisco, Smith, as well as any quarterback for that matter, is significantly better when they get support from the ground game.

2. No pressure situation
   Kansas City was an abysmal 2-14 in 2012. The Chiefs scored fewer points than any other team in the league. As the saying goes, "you couldn't get any worse".

   While in San Fransisco, Smith was continuously compared to Joe Montana and Steve Young, a comparison in which he always came up short. In Kansas City, Smith will be taking the reigns over from Matt Cassel and Brady Quinn, who combined to throw only eight touchdowns and 20 interceptions last season. In only eight and a half games in 2012, Smith threw 13 touchdowns and just five interceptions. Its not like the Chiefs weren't able to move the ball - they have some playmakers on offense. But turnovers - 37 in all - killed most opportunities for Kansas City to put points on the board. So while some refer to Smith as a "game manager", he has shown an ability to make smart decisions and not turn over the football. He led the NFL with only 1.1% of passes being intercepted in 2011.

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