How Steve Smith fits in
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How Steve Smith fits in
Sheil Kapadia, Philly.com
The Eagles surprised us again Wednesday evening, signing wide receiver Steve Smith to a one-year deal.
Before we try to figure out how Smith fits in, let's break down what we know about him.
He was a second-round pick in the 2007 draft (51st overall). That was 15 picks after the Eagles selected Kevin Kolb and six picks before they took Victor Abiamiri.
As a rookie, he appeared in just five games. In Smith's second season, he had 57 catches for 574 yards.
And in his third season, Smith blew up for 107 catches, 1,220 yards and seven touchdowns. Last year, he had 48 catches for 529 yards before suffering a knee injury in Week 14 against the Vikings that required microfracture surgery.
When he's healthy, Smith (5-11, 195) is a talented receiver with a knack for getting open. His 107 catches in 2009 were second in the NFL to only Wes Welker. Smith was targeted 159 times that season, fourth-most in the NFL.
Of his 107 catches, 78 were made within 10 yards of the line of scrimmage, and 99 were made within 20 yards. Andy Reid said earlier this offseason that the Eagles needed to work on their intermediate passing game. A healthy Smith would certainly help that.
He was also very good on third down in 2009, with 38 catches and 457 yards. And he had 61 catches for first downs that year, seventh-most in the NFL. In his career, eight of Smith's 11 touchdowns were red-zone scores.
Where has he lined up? Our friends over at Pro Football Focus helped with that one.
In 2010, he lined up on the outside 50.2 percent of the time and in the slot on 48.3 percent of snaps.
In 2009, he lined up outside on 42.6 percent of the snaps and in the slot 57 percent of the time.
In other words, it looks like he's pretty versatile and comfortable both inside and outside.
While Smith has not been a big-play guy (10.8 yards per reception), he did have a respectable 14 plays of 20+ yards in 2009 (tied for 20th in the NFL).
Everything with Smith comes down to health. If he's close to 100 percent physically, the Eagles can do a number of things with him. If Jeremy Maclin is healthy, they can go four wide and play without Brent Celek or LeSean McCoy at times. They can have Smith spell DeSean Jackson in the red zone. They have a capable fill-in if one of the top three guys gets injured. And they can rotate him in different positions.
The Eagles have mentioned several times how they admire how the Packers won the Super Bowl last season despite injuries.
"We didn't want to be at a point where one injury ruins our chance," Howie Roseman told SI.com's Damon Hack recently.
Smith is another asset. They saw a player with value and grabbed him. Isn't that what they did with Michael Vick on a much grander scale a couple summers ago? Isn't that what a lot of this offseason has been about?
I know the easy conclusion to draw is that the Eagles are deeply concerned about Maclin and need a replacement. But if they wanted to go that route, wouldn't they have signed a receiver that can play right away? We have no idea when Smith will be ready. I wish I could tell you something more about Maclin, but all I know is Andy Reid said he expects him to be ready in Week 1.
I'm sure the team is concerned about him. We don't even know if they know what's wrong with Maclin. So while there is clearly some connection between the Smith signing and Maclin's health, I don't know if it's as direct as it might seem on the surface.
As for Jackson, I don't think this signing has anything to do with his contract situation. Steve Smith coming off microfracture knee surgery is nowhere near Jackson at full health. They are two completely different receivers.
How it might affect Jackson is with cap space. I tried to clarify some things on that front in a post yesterday. As I explained, the Eagles can gain some cap relief if/when they sign Vick to a long-term deal. That really might be necessary now.
It seems like a low-risk/high-reward move. If Smith isn't healthy or doesn't make much of a contribution, it's only a one-year deal and the relationship will be short-lived.
If Smith is healthy, he's a versatile option that can add depth, help in the red zone and make plays on third down.
Earlier today, I posted:
What is DeSean Jackson worth?
Packers' Finley: Young shouldn't be talking
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Run and Shoot, anyone?— Scraps77
Comment removed.- The comment in the article comparing this signing to signing Mike Vick is not a terrible one. I'd have rather had a bigger receiver who could play immediately. But it does put a good player on the roster, and maybe down the road that will help. Like FranMc, I see this as a duplication of Avant, though Smith gets separation more easily.
The other good comment in the article was about the Packers. That is the first team I can remember winning the Super Bowl with an injury-riddled season. They achieved it for a lot of reasons, including having extra players on the roster who were good enough.— armchairGM - Also, Ingram was a 5th round draft pick. You are right that the Eagles were dead wrong on him, but it isn't like they lost big on Ingram. 5th round picks are small fries. Special teams players.. maybe..— trungy
- This signing doesn't make much sense. Even with Smith at 100% we have Avant in the slot. Unless Andy plans on totally abandoning the running game and lining up 4 wide I don't understand. The WR position is crowded now. I'm also surprised Smith didn't sign with a team he would get more playing time with.— FranMc73
- I don't think this signing will effect the cap situation because Winston Justice and Marlin Jackson are most likely gone, and our situation was already in good shape beforehand. It does make me wonder more about Maclin, we didn't sign Smith as a slot receiver because Avant is one of the best in the business.
Honestly though, if Maclin and Smith are both out for some of the season, our offense is still in good shape. The Eagles aren't going to suck terribly if Maclin isn't on the field, which everyone seems to think and freak out about. The only difference is that Avant, Celek, and Cooper will get more receptions and red zone looks.— colahead420 - Didn't Steve Smith jump into the McCoy vs. Osi fued during the off-season and take some shots at McCoy and the Eagles?? Interesting...— dawk2020
- What I want to know is how much is the contract and if there is any guaranteed money if this doesnt work out. If Steve Smith can recover from is injury, our offense will be explosive in every way. One question I have with the Eagles is "are we going to sign a LB before it is too late?"— wame440
- To quote The Wolf: let's not start sucking each other's popsicles yet. He's not even healthy.— Philly Fan in Kuwait
- There must be something deeply personal going on between Coughlin/Giants and Smith; Its insane for them to let this guy go. He was an untouchable piece of their Super Bowl team and salary cap was not a problem.
The Giants look like a team starting to fall apart, especially if they are letting guys of this caliber go, and now it looks like defensive end Osi Umi too.
— sdeens - not to sure about this move. I respect the Giants, why would they not sign him?— camasbud
- Guys like Marlin Jackson, Winston Justice, and possibly even Jamaal Jackson and Jaqua Parker, will be cut. Plenty of cap room to resign Desean, and it will happen.
Good move signing Smith - he's exactly what the Eagles need as a compliment to [a healthy Maclin] and Desean. He's basically a souped-up version of Jason Avant, tremendous hands and great in the red zone.— CosmoK - He and Avant on third down is a good look. Eagles need a slot receiver in this offense who can get open. Reid doesn't like to run the ball on third/fourth and short, so it's essential to have two guys who can line up in the slot and get open. — beegal99
- Paolibulldog, I hear what you're saying, but this really was a low risk investment. They will probably make it up when they cut a couple of camp bodies. By the way, Stratford Eagles rule!— yourdaddy!
- Agreed that Smith's skill set isn't the same as Maclin's -- but name me an available WR whose is. If this deal was made just for WR depth, then I say the Eagles should have signed Stephen Tulloch to help at LB, or gotten more help at OL. Otherwise, I think it means that Maclin is going to be impaired for a while.— paolibulldog
- Another weapon. And another dent to the jints. Gotta love it.— mikemaddog
- Come on, what are we complaining about! An all pro receiver for little money that can only help the receivers. He is also away from the Giants. Always good to find depth at any position. We will love this deal come week 5 or 6 when defenses won't be able to cover all our weapons.— EricSpin301
- I wonder if the credit of these pretty savvy moves should go to our baby faced GM? Or the fact that Reid knows he is on the block next or the fact that the iggs held back waiting for the new CBA?— xlGmanlx
- I wonder if the credit of these pretty savvy moves should go to our baby faced GM? Or the fact that Reid knows he is on the block next or the fact that the iggs held back waiting for the new CBA?— xlGmanlx
- Eagles' medical staff was dead wrong about Cornelius Ingram two years ago. If they've made the same mistake with SS, then the Eagles have wasted $2M with no upside. At least when they signed Vick, they had an option for year two.— paolibulldog
- The dude was a 5th rd pick, it's not like the eagles were bankin on him to be the next tony gonzales. — beerflow
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