The Loop

Alex Smith putting in reps on THAT leg on his 36th birthday will make you want to run through a wall (or two)

Last week, against our better judgement, we showed you Alex Smith's leg. If you somehow missed the viral, NSFW images, we suggest you count your lucky stars and move on with your life. Don't look back, kids. Never look back. In all likelihood, however, your paths crossed those of Smith's fateful battle scars, and in all likelihood, they're now burned into your memory for all of time. Sure, they will haunt your dreams until your final breath, but they do make what we're about to show you about one million times more inspiring.

Here's Alex Smith on Thursday, his 36th birthday, putting in hard reps on the same leg he almost lost a little over a year ago. Guts doesn't even begin to describe it.

Smith hasn't been shy about this: He wants to play in the NFL again. At the age of 36, coming off a career life-threatening injury, that probably means 2020 or bust. Whether or not Smith should play football again is another issue entirely, but this video proves two things:

A. He's tough enough

B. He's not just talking the talk. He's walking the walk . . . and that leg is holding up to the miles.

So it's not a matter of heart or desire. He's got that by the flatbed. It's not even really a matter of health. Smith will be cheap, low risk and if doctors clear him, then the doctors clear him. At this point it feels like a matter of fit. Who needs an inexpensive veteran leader with a bionically reconstructed leg in their quarterback room? Who needs a shot of morale? Who has been willing take on reclamation projects time and time again?

Wild Card Round - Tennessee Titans v New England Patriots

Maddie Meyer

Ordinarily this is the part where we would say "you hate to see it," but in this case, we really wouldn't.