| Jerry Rice’s trip across the Bay Area
rightfully dominated last week’s NFL transaction news, but there was another
free-agent signing last week that may have a bigger impact this coming fall. The
Antowain Smith-Buffalo Bills saga finally came to a resolution last Thursday when Smith,
who had been released by the Bills for salary-cap purposes, signed a one-year deal with
the New England Patriots.
Smith, a 6-foot-2, 228-pound running back, will apparently have every opportunity to
find a home in New England as the biggest, strongest runner on the team’s roster.
This looks to be a great move by Bill Belichick and the Patriots. Smith was a highly
productive back his first two years in the NFL before falling out of favor with the
then-Bills’ coaching staff of head coach Wade Phillips and offensive coordinator Joe
Pendry.
As the Bills filled the RB position by a committee of several players, Smith got buried
deeper and deeper on the bench. When he did enter a game, he was set up to fail since
everyone, including the opposition, knew he was going to run the ball. More often than
not, Smith was tackled for no gain or a loss, and his yards-per-carry average fell to a
career-low 3.5.
However, Smith is the type of big back who excels the more he touches the ball. In
fact, his only NFL season with 300 carries (in ’98) netted him 1,124 yards and eight
touchdowns. After two disappointing seasons in Buffalo, he provided a final glimpse of his
talent to the Bills in Week 17 last season when he rushed for a career-best 147 yards on
17 carries and three touchdowns in a 42-23 victory at Seattle.
In that game, Smith ran hard, hit the holes and exploded into the secondary —
something he rarely accomplished with the Bills. In fact, most of his carries in the last
two seasons consisted of Smith slowly shuffling his feet, struggling to find room to make
a positive gain.
But as he showed in the season finale against Seattle, Smith is capable of carrying the
load for a team. He needs 18-20 carries per game to accomplish that, but that is just what
the Patriots have lacked since the days of Curtis Martin and Robert Edwards’ rookie
season.
Smith will battle J.R. Redmond, Kevin Faulk and the amazing Edwards, who is attempting
to come back from major knee surgery. If Smith wins the job — and Belichick will give
him every opportunity to do just that — the Patriots will have a workhorse running
back who can get key third downs and take some heat off QB Drew Bledsoe.
In fact, with the additions of free-agent WRs Charles Johnson, Torrance Small and Bert
Emanuel, and offensive linemen such as OG Mike Compton, OG Joe Panos and draft pick OT
Kenyatta Jones, the Patriots have greatly upgraded their offense.
The Pats’ 2001 schedule is nothing overwhelming, with games against mediocre
defenses like Cincinnati, Carolina, Indianapolis, Atlanta, St. Louis and Cleveland —
the benefit of a fifth-place schedule after going 5-11 last season.
Bledsoe must be chomping at the bit to get to work with the new offensive players
surrounding him. WRs Terry Glenn and Troy Brown also return and give the Pats their best
offense since their Super Bowl season of 1996.
Are the Patriots a playoff team? Not yet. But they should definitely be a very
competitive squad that could be looking at a .500 season. And that’s a step in the
right direction. |
