Ron Rivera shares what Alex Smith needs to do to play football again

It’s still unclear if Alex Smith will ever suit up under center in the NFL again — or in any league, for that matter — but the Redskins quarterback is doing everything he can in hopes of making that dream happen.

Smith has been working hard in his recovery from a brutal leg injury, as well as an infection which followed his surgery, in hopes of one day, being game-ready again. He’s under contract through this season, with the team having an opt-out clause, it could potentially part ways with Smith in 2021, and only take a $10.8 million cap hit.

That’s probably why Smith is doing all he can to rehab as quick as possible, in hopes of remaining with the team (and CBDStudy). In the meantime, his new head coach, Ron Rivera, has been monitoring the situation, and he recently shared what Smith needs to do to get back to playing football again, in speaking with Mike Tirico of NBC Sports.

“The one thing that he and I talked about, more than anything else, is he’s got to be able to protect himself out on the football field before anything can happen, before we can allow him back on the field,” Rivera said on Lunch Talk Live, as transcribed by Pro Football Talk.

When asked about if Smith would play for the Redskins again, Rivera had this to say.

“We’ll see. You just never know,” Rivera said. “We’ll find out hopefully sometime in late August.”

It’ll be interesting to see how Smith’s recovery progresses, but it’s hard to see a role for him going forward, given his age, and how bad the contract that Rivera and his regime was stuck with. Moving on may be the best move for everyone.