Steve Smith Is Very, Very Average Now

[Jrock88]

im assuming this is a heat of the moment rage thread

[Frank Hollywood]

I'd still say he's above average but you'd be a fool to not admit his decline has been evident this season.

He only has two seasons left after this one. There is also a third optional year but time will tell if we elect to use it.

[CharlottePanther]

I have to agree. Smitty just cant seperate anymore and when he does finally get separation he drops passes like a mofo. He needs to retire next year. We need weapons bad. Maybe double dip WR in the draft? Get a big body, AJ Green type WR in the 1st and a Smitty like, speedy slot WR in the 2nd.

[Proudiddy]

I'd like to see where I made a direct correlation between "getting old and dropping passes" as so many of you reading comprehension extraordinaire s are inferring I did. That is laughable and dumb. Although I will say that I think he has grown as a person off the field and expanded his horizons much broader than a singular focus on football as he has grown and matured, which I think has resulted in a drop in volatility and focus on the field. I think all he used to care about was football and played with that chip on his shoulder... don't get me wrong, he still has a chip on his shoulder, but its a much smaller one.

And again, I'm trying to see where I said "he's a scrub" or "he's too old, he's useless and needs to be put down." LOL... I said he's "very, very average now" and in my subsequent posts I explained how and why. I didn't say he sucked, I said relative to the old Smitty, his performances are now "very, very average now."

I love Smitty, but its obvious he's not what he was. Drops are simply a lack of focus, but it's clear that he is lacking something in that department now because its happening far more often than it ever did before. And for all the circle-jerking herp derp,"he proved you wrong" crap after the game, he still finished with 6 catches for 60 some yards IIRC. Do you consider that above average, or the kind of stats the old Smitty would put up? Imagine his stats if he had caught those 2 or 3 he dropped yesterday. Its possible the score wouldve been a lot different as well. Or what if he had broke a tackle and ran one in for a TD like he used to... I'm just saying, AGAIN, relative to what he was, he is now average compared to it.

He is still our best option and he is still my favorite Panther of all-time. I'm not pulling for or welcoming his decline. I'm just saying he is not what he was and at timeTimes it has hurt us this year. We need to bring in #1 material in the offseason and transition him into primarily a #2 or permanent slot guy until he retires - where he can still do a lot of damage.

[Proudiddy]

about the drops it seems to be a team wide issue and here's what I've been wondering…..

Is it Cam Newton? I remember growing up watching Brett Farve play(one of my all time fav none panthers) and the side line reporters always talk about how hard he throws Passes and sometimes the hardness of them being thrown causes them to sometimes drop. And last year I watched Andrew Luck for the first time about 3/4 through the season after only watching the Panthers Play, and thought to myself he's either throwing a really slow ball or Cam has a rocket of a Arm.

And honestly have been wondering if this has been the Issue, now it's not the sole reason for them but you have to admit there have been a fair amount this year including a very sure handed Olsen even dropping a few, not to mention Smith and the Rest of the Crew.

Now is this a issue? yeah you may want Cam to have a little more touch and less hammer, but the speed of the passes is also one of Cam's strong points, it's one of those things where you can't have your cake and eat it too, you have the take the immense good that comes from having a fast and accurate arm with the negative of the dropped passes from over powering it to the point of catching receivers off guard or unable to pull the rocket in….

I'm sure that has some effect on the receivers when they are catching it away from their bodies, but at least one of the drops yesterday, and I think the dropped TD Smitty had on a slant a couple weeks back IIRC, were a result of him letting the ball into his body and trying to catch it against it. Which again, he rarely did before. Smitty has always been known for going to the ball and attacking it.

[OneBadCat]

Christ can we just lock up the Smith is done threads every week?

 

 

Smith still had a good game yesterday and came back with some crucial catches. He is simply taking himself out of the game mentally with these drops. I think he is overthinking those big play catches because he knows how important they are to the team and for his critics to stay off his back. He is 34, he knows damn well that he still has to carry this group WR's and he knows another WR should be taking the reins.

 

Obviously he is still somewhat getting open if he is position to drop the ball. He should have had close to 100 yds yesterday.

 

The drops are a problem no doubt but I have faith that he will fix it.

 

 

The old Smitty would have 60 yd games consistently then a few huge games. He is still very important to us and he is not average at all.

[jackson113]

To me Steve is more of a decoy now to draw the other teams def. so Lafell, GIn and Olsen can make a play. He gets in the heads of the other teams and that is a plus in my opinion.

[Proudiddy]

No doubt he is still valuable. Again, I'm saying average relative to who he was before.

He still is one of the best in the league in his release, getting off the line, and getting open. He's still quick, but I think it's obvious that he has lost a step or so in top-end speed. Where he is lacking now is in attacking the ball, breaking tackles and/or away from the pack, and obviously the drops.

[jtnc]

He has dropped a shitload of passes this season, simple catches at that.

[stankowalski]

Reactionary thread. I don't think that drops are something that get worse with age. It doesn't make any sense for there to be a correlation between Steve dropping the ball and him being older. What is the rationale there? I think he's just had some moments when he wasn't in the game mentally and we're looking at a lot of coincidence in terms of him dropping catchable passes. I think he's putting too much pressure on himself to produce like he did when he was 25. He's evolving, not becoming useless. He's still far and away our best bet.

 

If you want to see a very, very average NFL wide receiver then look no further than a guy like Domenik Hixon. That's average. Smith is still damn good. He'd be a starter on most any team in the league.

 

As a person ages, their reaction times (reflexes) slowly diminishes.  Eye hand coordination also takes a hit.  Age can and does factor into a receiver dropping passes.

 

Anyone that's watched the Panthers since Smitty has been here should be able to tell the difference between Smitty now, and when he was in his prime.  His explosiveness isn't there anymore.  Does he have his moments?  Yeah.  He's still a good receiver, just not an elite receiver like he was in his prime.  I also think he would benefit from moving to the slot.

 

[Happy Panther]

As a person ages, their reaction times (reflexes) slowly diminishes.  Eye hand coordination also takes a hit.  Age can and does factor into a receiver dropping passes.

 

Anyone that's watched the Panthers since Smitty has been here should be able to tell the difference between Smitty now, and when he was in his prime.  His explosiveness isn't there anymore.  Does he have his moments?  Yeah.  He's still a good receiver, just not an elite receiver like he was in his prime.  I also think he would benefit from moving to the slot.

 

 

I truly believe that we experimented with Lafell being our down field option in the Atlanta game. If I recall all 4 of our long shots were to him. It was his chance to make people think he could be a #1 which I have always believed he could be.

[AceBoogie]

Could it be that he's pressing? Trying to do to much before he has the ball

[weymouthst]

Say what you want, the last catch he had on 3rd down was money. Enjoy watching him while you can, he is a luxury at this point.

 

And honestly, he has 2-3 years left. Steve isn't as fast, quick, or agile, but he can play some damn football that's for sure. I really hope he sticks around after this year.

[TrueBlackandBlue]

I have to agree. Smitty just cant seperate anymore and when he does finally get separation he drops passes like a mofo. He needs to retire next year. We need weapons bad. Maybe double dip WR in the draft? Get a big body, AJ Green type WR in the 1st and a Smitty like, speedy slot WR in the 2nd.

 

Oh yeah no problem cause Pro Bowl wide receivers are a dime a dozen. Well at least during training camp it seems like we've got 8 WR's poised to break out as number 1's and our only problem is which ones are we going to have to cut. Fact is, its hard to find receivers like Smitty even at 34. Also, we might have to accept a few more drops from our team than others cause of all that mustard Cam puts on his throws.