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No going against 89 this preseason

ctrcat

By ctrcat,
in Carolina Panthers

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KB_fan Proficient

KB_fan

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Saw a nice article about Smitty yesterday at NFL.com talking about his hopes to reach some significant career milestones

http://www.nfl.com/news/story/0ap3000000669168/article/steve-smith-cites-career-milestones-as-one-reason-for-return

I hope he comes back strong and can reach these goals and go out with a bang.   He deserves it.

 

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"You never want to end on a miss if you're shooting hoops," Smith said. "That's why. And there are some things I want to accomplish. I never thought I would be able to get to 1,000 receptions, 14,000 yards. Some of those things are very close that I would like to achieve. I teach my kids, How do you handle adversity? Someone told me that if you go down a road, you will hit some bumps. If there are no bumps, it means it's not really a road. We all as parents preach to our kids. Will we be one of those parents who say, 'Do as I say, not as I do?' This is adversity."

**********

The recovery has been worse -- slower and more boring -- than he expected. Other than the broken leg early in his career, the Achilles tear is the only long-term injury he has suffered. Much of his rehab work has focused on mobility and getting the swelling out of his right leg. He has had to retrain his body how to stand up, how to do squats. As of late April, he still could not stand on tiptoes to reach for something.

"I'm not being dramatic -- it's the most productive non-productive thing I've ever done," Smith said. "It's little things I've done so well for so long; I've taken it for granted."

When Smith was discussing this in late April, he was nearly six months out from the day he was hurt. At the time, he still could not run. The team has put no official timetable on his return, although the hope is that he can participate in training camp, which opens at the end of July. Harbaugh plans to bring Smith back slowly, having him only run routes during camp. He does not plan to let him play during the preseason, hoping that he will be ready for regular-season games. The unpredictable nature of Smith's recovery has not dovetailed well with his personality.

"I expected to be able to run a little bit," Smith said in late April. "That's an unrealistic expectation I put on myself that my wife, the training staff, the coaches and doctors said, 'Steve, that's not reality.' I joked with them -- the one thing I really believe in, if nobody believes in me, I damn well believe in myself. They told me I'm putting too much pressure on myself.

 

 

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CoastalCat Newbie

CoastalCat

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I liked this one. 

"I may catch that [1,000th pass] in my uniform, get in my car and go home," Smith said with a smile. "Straight from there, drive all the way from M&T Bank [Stadium] straight to Charlotte, one shot."

http://espn.go.com/blog/baltimore-ravens/post/_/id/28213/why-did-steve-smith-come-back-to-ravens-to-reach-1000-receptions 

 

I know he's not on the team anymore, but the article made me smile. I hope he hits 1,000, even wearing purple. That's my wide receiver.

giphy.gif

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TN05

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33 minutes ago, KB_fan said:

Saw a nice article about Smitty yesterday at NFL.com talking about his hopes to reach some significant career milestones

http://www.nfl.com/news/story/0ap3000000669168/article/steve-smith-cites-career-milestones-as-one-reason-for-return

I hope he comes back strong and can reach these goals and go out with a bang.   He deserves it.

 

 

If he plays anywhere near as well as he did last year - and he was a monster that year, multiple 10-catch 150-yard games), which is no guarantee given his age and how difficult Achilles injuries are, he'll easily pass 1,000 and 14,500. He could play as poorly as he did in 2010 and still surpass or near those goals. I'm just sad he didn't do it last year given how good he was playing. He was playing by far his best since 2008, maybe even 2005.

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CoastalCat Newbie

CoastalCat

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20 minutes ago, w280sax said:

I dont know what it takes statistically so i ask,  could steve be a hof wr?  Is that possible or likely?

I'm so glad you asked. Per the article I linked above...

"Of the 13 players who have made 1,000 catches, six have been eligible for the Pro Football Hall of Fame. Four -- Jerry Rice, Cris Carter, Tim Brown and Marvin Harrison -- have been inducted. Only two -- Terrell Owens and Isaac Bruce -- are waiting to get in.

Smith also only needs 68 yards receiving to reach 14,000 yards, which is an important milestone to him and Hall of Fame voters. Five of the seven eligible players to eclipse that mark are in the Hall."

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KB_fan

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There was quite a long thread at some point last year about whether Steve could possibly make the HoF.  It was probably after he announced his retirement, before his injury.  I'll see if I can find it.

Here's a Huddle post from Jan 2015 at the end of 2014 season updating Steve's progress towards potential "Hall of Fame" credentials:

Here is a very good NFL.com article from last August.  This is the article I was remembering... there was some Huddle thread discussing it, but I'm not finding it.

http://www.nfl.com/news/story/0ap3000000509117/article/the-definitive-hall-of-fame-case-for-steve-smith

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