I see too much hope pinned on Smith here.

[ElkinPanthersFan]

If there is just one Panther that I felt confident in saying he would give it his best without fear of injury, no matter how old he is or how poorly his team is playing, it is Steve Smith.

I'd agree with this.. or Beason.

[PantherFanForLife]

Have we been watching the same Steve Smith all these years? He risked (and received) injury from playing flag football. The guy just wants to win, and he'll do anything he can do it.

Agreed, but that's been the case for the last two years.

We have and I'll I'm saying is with his new attitude and him being named a Captain, don't expect the SAME Steve.

And rightly so.

I think he's getting wiser and is changing his attitude. He will still be our best receiver this year and I see him as being very effective. Whereas before he TOOK PRIDE in knowing he was the only weapon in our passing game, I think now he's getting to the point where he's starting to see that as a bad thing and a risk for himself.

[ckad79]

Anytime you get one part of your offense going, it improves others. If Smith can start to catch a few balls, he's draw double coverage which means it will be easier for the #2 receiver to get open and make defenses pay for getting on Smith.

This is pretty much football 101.

Stewart is also a big help! He forces defenses to come in to stop the run, allowing Smith to get open and he improves our short passing game. Remember, this team is about defense and resting that defense. We need to run the ball all day, short yardage, and eat up the clock. Smith is mainly used to get us a first down when we're struggling to pick up 3 or 4 yards a carry. For the most part, our offense is short little passes and solid runs.

Everything has to click to make the offense work and Smith is a huge part of the puzzle!

Do I think he's lost a step? Sure. The guy obviously lost a step last year, because there were numerous plays where I recall him catching the ball but not being fast enough to get away for the touchdown. Steve, three years ago, would catch the ball, turn on a dime, and fly to the endzone. That wasn't the case last year, and with an even slower Smitty this year, I don't expect an improvement!!

Still, with as much heart as he has and passion, you can't help but realize how important he is to the offense, in more ways than one.

[Cat'sGrowl]

I didn't read this post, because it was just too dang long.

But rest assured, when Dockery gets here, you're gonna pay my friend.

Oh, you're gonna pay.

[MadHatter]

We have and I'll I'm saying is with his new attitude and him being named a Captain, don't expect the SAME Steve.

And rightly so.

I think he's getting wiser and is changing his attitude. He will still be our best receiver this year and I see him as being very effective. Whereas before he TOOK PRIDE in knowing he was the only weapon in our passing game, I think now he's getting to the point where he's starting to see that as a bad thing and a risk for himself.

I think you will see a diff Smitty OFF the field....On the field, he will be the same fiery competitor. That is not something that you can change.

[CharlotteBeer.com]

I think you will see a diff Smitty OFF the field....On the field, he will be the same fiery competitor. That is not something that you can change.

I was about to say the same thing.

Off-the-field Steve Smith does not equal on-the-field Steve Smith.

[Davidson Deac II]

Most of our problems seem to be with the passing game. I can't see how getting our best receiver will not help. Doesn't mean everything will be great in the passing game, just means it will be better.

I am not concerned to much about opening running lanes, because we didn't run the ball that much anyway. That being said, our running game has started out slow each of the last 2 years, and I hope we can avoid that this year.

[Longbeachisland]

I am a little surprised how dominant the steve smith talk is around here. It seems there are plenty of good players on this team to be proud of besides smith.

[blackcatgrowl]

I am a little surprised how dominant the steve smith talk is around here. It seems there are plenty of good players on this team to be proud of besides smith.

Uh... are any of them receivers? Because right now... everyone is looking at us as a one dimensional team.

[Dpantherman]

I am a little surprised how dominant the steve smith talk is around here. It seems there are plenty of good players on this team to be proud of besides smith.

SHH!!! before they forget Matt moore is still QB and they demand that Jimmy Clausen start. go with the flow.

[boo7382]

I didn't read this post, because it was just too dang long.

But rest assured, when Dockery gets here, you're gonna pay my friend.

Oh, you're gonna pay.

hahahaha you are SOOO right about that. I will be back just for that lol

[CRA]

I am a little surprised how dominant the steve smith talk is around here. It seems there are plenty of good players on this team to be proud of besides smith.

the drop off between the rest of the WRs and Steve Smith is pretty HUGE. That isn't so much saying Steve is an unmatched talent.........but the rest of the depth chart is THAT bad at WR. So Steve playing makes a signicant difference.

We have lots of good players. We have one WR.

[boo7382]

I already posted this in my thread earlier but I thought I would reiterate in here just b/c its such an awesome stat.

The only two players in nfl history who have scored by rush, reception, and return in a post season are

steve smith:thumbsup: and reggie bush

[Longbeachisland]

the drop off between the rest of the WRs and Steve Smith is pretty HUGE. That isn't so much saying Steve is an unmatched talent.........but the rest of the depth chart is THAT bad at WR. So Steve playing makes a signicant difference.

We have lots of good players. We have one WR.

i guess that makes sense, we didn't have any linebackers last year so we talked about lawrence taylor.