For much of his NFL career, Chiefs quarterback Alex Smith has been perceived as a human caution flag, unwilling or unable to let loose, mesmerized by flashing yellow lights all around him that sometimes only he seems to see.
The label is overly simplistic, of course.
It doesn’t recognize the intelligence in his game, his sophistication in understanding what he can and can’t trust around him and that it’s not such a bad thing to think: first do no harm.
Smith has broken out of that typecasting this season, going downfield far more and expanding his game to include 12 of those newfangled touchdown passes to wide receivers after the Chiefs hadn’t had so much as one last year.