Vernon Davis has had Alex Smith as a teammate for the tight end's entire seven-year NFL career. That will change in the 2013 season, after the San Francisco 49ers agreed to trade Smith to the Kansas City Chiefs on Wednesday.
"It was tough for me because I really care about Alex," Davis said on ESPN Radio's Mike & Mike in the Morning. "I love the guy.
"It's hard to see him leave, but I know the business. I understand it. It's the nature of the business."
Davis watched Smith go from being considered a bust as the No. 1 pick, to being rejuvenated with coach Jim Harbaugh, to directing a Super Bowl contender and then being benched after an injury and ultimately being traded. He was a trooper during Super Bowl week as he repeatedly was asked about losing his job.
"It's been an emotional roller-coaster for Alex," Davis said. "He's been up, he's been down, but he still can hang in there. He's a classy guy. You saw what happened to him this year. He remained a 49er and he didn't complain. He didn't go to coach saying, 'Coach I should be the starter. I had a concussion and you took me out.' He didn't do none of those things.
"I take my hat off to Alex for just the growth as a man."
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The transition to Colin Kaepernick went extremely well, as the 49ers went 5-2 during the regular season and advanced to the Super Bowl after the move.
"We were hungry, we wanted to win," Davis said. "We've been through so much with numerous coaches coming in and out, but we still wanted to win no matter what.
"We had to support the coach. ... There was nothing we could say about the situation so we had to go along with Kaepernick."
Follow Kareem Copeland on Twitter @kareemcopeland.
