Alex Smith Throws Pick In End Zone To Chris Conte (Video)

Kansas City Chiefs quarterback Alex Smith was poised to give his team an important fourth quarter touchdown, but a Tampa Bay Buccaneers safety had different plans.

Alex Smith doesn’t throw many interceptions. The Kansas City Chiefs quarterback had tossed just three this season and he’s never thrown more than seven in a campaign since 2010. That’s back when he played for the San Francisco 49ers.

Even the most careful of decision-makers and accurate of quarterbacks will make mistakes and it isn’t easy to be precise with a crowd of bodies in the end zone. The end zone, however, is where you need to be the most cautious, and that’s where Smith failed on Sunday against the Tampa Bay Buccaneers.

Smith had plenty of time in the pocket to deliver an accurate throw. He thought he had wide receiver Chris Conley open up the seam, but I guess he didn’t notice the ball-hawking Chris Conte lying in wait.

Conte was biding his time underneath and pounced on the ill-advised throw. It’s the second-straight week in which Conte has made a game-breaking interceptions, as he notched a pick-six against former teammate Jay Cutler last week.

Cutler’s throw was far more embarrassing than this one, but Smith’s error came at a critical point in the game. Instead of potentially putting the Chiefs up 17-12 (or at least 13-12), he enabled the Buccaneers to extend their lead to 19-10.

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Smith’s interception could overshadow what had been a solid day. He had completed 21-of-28 passes for over 250 yards, and both Travis Kelce and Tyreek Hill have enjoyed strong days. Kelce and Hill are the biggest difference-makers in the Chiefs passing offense right now and they continued this against the Bucs defense.