Alex Smith vs Jay Cutler? That sort of contradicts what Gannon and Young both said about Cutler, that he would thrive under Trestman. Smith was brutal until Harbaugh came in and watered down the offense to such a basic level that almost any QB would've put up the numbers Smith did the last 2 years.
Cutler actually gives Trestman more options because he can pass deep and is more mobile. If Trestman can correct some of Cutler's bad habits, he will be 10 times better than Smith would be in the same offense. Cutler's ceiling is so much higher. We will find out this year because Smith has Reid in KC, but I can't see Smith being more than just a game manager. He is not a bad QB, but I don't believe he would be better than Cutler in a Trestman offense. Trestman also helped Plummer in 1998 almost double his numbers, and I would say Cutler and Plummer are very comparable QB's. He did the same for Kosar in 1989.