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On Sunday, Chiefs quarterback Alex Smith got beat up something bad against the Colts, routinely taking hits big enough for his wife to openly question what the referees were doing. Smith was eventually removed with what the Chiefs described as a concussion, but now the team says he never suffered one.

On Monday, according to Adam Tiecher of ESPN, trainer Rick Burkholder said Smith has been "asymptomatic" and didn't suffer a concussion.

"That's what an unaffiliated [neurological consultant] believes, that's what [team doctor Mike] Monaco believes, that's what I believe now," Burkholder said. "He's been absolutely asymptomatic."

During the game, Smith was removed once with a potential concussion after taking a brutal hit while sliding. He passed the protocol, returned to the game and then suffered what the team called a concussion. He did not return and was replaced by backup Nick Foles.

The reverse diagnosis is odd and certainly worth raising eyebrows over.

However, the Chiefs appear to be handling this pretty well. For starters, they never brought Smith back into the game.

"He was in the middle of the concussion protocol, but we weren't going to return him in the same game," Burkholder said.

And they're going to take this week and run Smith through the protocol to return as if he has a concussion anyway.

"We will go through the return-to-play protocol and see where he's at," Burkholder said. "Although we don't think he has a concussion, we're going to be cautious and we're going to take him through all those steps before we put him back on the field just to be sure we're not missing anything."

Smith was evaluated for a concussion because he suffered a lacerated ear on a play where he got hammered by a defender and had his helmet bounce off the turf.

The play where Smith was removed for the rest of the game wasn't much different.

If the Chiefs were just going full Officer Barbrady -- "Nothing to see here, people, move along now" -- it would be a big concern. But the Chiefs medical staff is being as cautious as they possibly can, while also being up front about Smith's status.