...If the Niners had drafted Aaron Rodgers instead of Alex Smith?
[
www.cbssports.com]
It's been 11 years since the 2005 NFL Draft, and at this point, it's probably safe to say that the 49ers kind of blew it with the No. 1 overall pick.
At the time, the 49ers needed a quarterback, so it was pretty clear they were going to take one of two guys: Alex Smith or Aaron Rodgers.
If 49ers fans had gotten to make the selection, San Francisco probably would've drafted Rodgers. The quarterback was popular in the Bay Area because he grew up in Northern California (Chico) and attended a Bay Area college (Cal).
Unfortunately, fans don't have any say in the draft, so the 49ers took Smith.
So why did the 49ers spurn their hometown hero?
Rodgers was asked that exact question during a recent appearance on the HBO show Any Given Wednesday. If you're a 49ers fan, you might not want to read any further because the answer is so ridiculous that it might make you cry.
"The story that I heard, and I don't know if it's true or not, was that Mike Nolan said that when he saw Alex open the car door for his mom, he knew that was the quarterback he wanted," Rodgers said.
Um, what? The 49ers picked Smith because he opened the car door for his mom!
Apparently, Rodgers never got a chance to match Smith in the manners department.
"I was at lunch with [the 49ers]," Rodgers said. "My mom wasn't there. My dad wasn't there."
Although Rodgers' story sounds unbelievable, it might actually be true. Back in April, Nolan admitted that there was no real football reason for picking Smith over Rodgers. The former 49ers coach said the team went with Smith because Rodgers was "too cocky."
"I just laugh at stories like that because it has nothing to do with being a quarterback," Rodgers said of Nolan's reasoning.
Based on Nolan's record in San Francisco (18-37), it doesn't seem like there were many real football reason for any draft pick he made.
Anyway, despite the fact that Smith went No. 1 and Rodgers fell all the way to No. 24, the two didn't let that get between them: Rodgers and Smith are still friends.
"I love Alex," Rodgers said. "Alex is one of my favorite guys in the league and it's been fun to watch him grow and get into a situation where he can excel and be the quarterback we all expect him to be. He's done an incredible job being efficient, making plays and doing what he does."
Although things have worked out for Rodgers, 49ers fans are still kind of bitter about the whole thing.
Edited 1 time(s). Last edit at 07/17/2016 10:05AM by Rams43.
