BREAKING: Alex Smith OUT; Heinicke to Start at QB for WFT Vs. Bucs

ASHBURN, Va. -- Just because the calendar has turned to 2021 doesn't mean the chaos and wackiness of 2020 has ended.

Certainly the season has not, and the Washington Football Team are either on the verge of seeing their year come to an abrupt end or continuing on a magic carpet ride ... So, who will be the WB tonight against Tampa Bay?

The WFT wanted it to be Alex Smith. But ... Smith is OUT, listed as inactive for the playoff opener.

The WFT spent the night in their team hotel with a similar schedule to keep them loose as they did last Sunday in Philadelphia. But how “loose” is Smith? Not loose enough, as he still has serious soreness or tightness in the calf today.

So Taylor Heinicke will start.

As we wrote in this space on Thursday, there was significant concern for Smith's recovery as coach Ron Rivera described hiim as still sore and expressing a desire for an extra day of rest.

READ MORE: Smith or Helper Heinicke?

We wrote in part: "The concern I heard in Rivera's voice on Thursday allowed the possibility, and maybe it's even a strong one, that Taylor Heinicke might even start."

We weren't overreacting. In the afternoon yesterday, a cautiously optimistic report about how Smith was feeling seemed to put a positive spin on the chances he would start.

By last night, that had changed.

READ MORE: Soap Opera Storylines

It was Rivera's answer on Tuesday to Washington Football on SI.com's question in which he revealed a possible QB rotation plan that set off all sorts of alarms, and rightfully so.

If Smith was going to be rotated in and out from the start, why even play him at all? If you're Rivera, you owe it to your team to give them the best shot. That shot against Tampa Bay now comes with a healthy Heinicke at QB.