KANSAS CITY, Mo. -- They say that the first step toward addressing a problem is actually admitting you have a problem.
So, does Chiefs quarterback Alex Smith -- dubbed "Checkdown Alex" in San Francisco, a moniker Chiefs fans fully understand now -- even admit that the Chiefs didn't look for deep passing plays nearly enough in 2014?
"It's impossible to go through a year of film and not see plenty of missed opportunities," Smith said Monday. "You're just not going to get them all and you're not going to see them all. I don't care who you are. I think that's just the way it is.
"So it's hard -- we haven't had the chance at this point -- but as you're going through the year, you watch the film and you learn from it. But then you're on to the next week and the next challenge and so you don't really bank that stuff like that. So it'll be good here with the offseason to really kind of pool all of that film together and really be able to categorize it and break it down in all of the different ways."
Hmmm. So if the film suggests there were opportunities downfield that were missed, will Smith focus on looking for more big plays in 2015?
"I think you want big plays," he said. "Certainly, that is a part of it -- pushing it down vertically. Certainly, you are always trying to create big plays on offense as well as efficient plays.
"I don't think you want to force them, though. They need to be things that just come to you and are built in so you can make those plays. I think any time you are stubborn enough to say, 'I'm going to throw this deep,' I don't think good things happen. You need to be able to take the opportunities when they show themselves and then execute them."
But does Smith admit that perhaps he doesn't look downfield enough to give big plays a chance?
"Every play is different," Smith said. "The designs of plays are different, all the scenarios are different. It's just tough. Certainly, I think there are times.
"You always as a quarterback never want to be looking at the rush. That's kind of something you feel and you move within the pocket and you feel, and I think certainly, when you become a runner, those are things that you feel. I think you're always trying to leave your eyes downfield and try to create.
"But you always have this internal time clock in your head too that you've trained. You've got this time clock of the ball getting out ... and sometimes there are not a lot of good things that can happen just standing in there with the ball."
Flip through our photo album of NFL cheerleaders.
You can follow Jeffrey Flanagan on Twitter at @jflanagankc or email him at jeffreyflanagan6@gmail.com.
