Kareem Hunt: I was 'in shock' over Alex Smith trade

News of Alex Smithbeing traded from the Kansas City Chiefs to the Washington Redskins broke and Kareem Hunt had to put down his fork.

The Chiefs' star running back said he was in the middle of dinner Tuesday night when he heard his team would have a new starting quarterback in 2018. Hunt said Wednesday morning the trade is still taking time to process.

"Actually, I was at dinner when I found this out," Hunt said on Good Morning Football, just hours after the trade agreement took place. "I kind of just stopped eating. I was a little bit in shock. You know, Alex is such a great leader, a great quarterback and he's a competitor. Loves to win. He's a guy you want on your team and after a great season like this, it's kind of heartbreaking to see him go."

Smith started 76 games for the Chiefs the past five seasons, leading them to four playoff appearances. It was his throws and handoffs that helped lead the way for Hunt's breakout rookie season. And in the Pro Bowl running back's opinion, the Chiefs traded away a really good one.

"I can say this; the Redskins are getting a quarterback who's going to go out there and compete," Hunt said. "He's going to want to win more than anybody. I've seen Alex do some things when he ran the football, just diving for the extra yard, diving over people, trying to get the last inches, get the first down. You know, you don't get that out of many quarterbacks like Alex. Especially being 33."

With the door closing on Smith, that means another opens for Patrick Mahomes. For Hunt, that's at least a respectable consolation prize.

Hunt came in with Mahomes in the same 2017 Chiefs draft class. He's seen the rookie's arm in mini-camps and practices throughout the past year. In his mind, the No. 10 overall pick in the 2017 NFL Draft is ready to take over for Smith.

"I know what we're getting from Mahomes and that's my best friend on the team," Hunt said. "We came in together, went to rookie mini-camp together and we always talked about we got to be the future, me and him. Just seeing Mahomes step up in that last game he played in, he did a great job. And just, the guy's got a strong arm and can make plays at any time and definitely having a guy to come in and start now in him, I just can't wait to see what he brings to the table."