Former QB Brad Smith thriving as Jets? do-it-all By DENNIS WASZAK Jr., AP Sports Writer FLORHAM PARK, N.J. (AP)-Brad Smith is listed on the New York Jets' roster as a wide receiver only because jack-of-all-trades doesn?t exist as a position. The former record-breaking Missouri quarterback has been lining up all over the field for the Jets and making an impact in his fourth season.?That man, he does it all,? special teams ace James Ihedigbo said Friday. ?Brad Smith is Mr. Versatility.?Smith is a wide receiver, running back, quarterback, special-teams blocker and tackler, and now an elusive kick returner. He ran back the kickoff a team-record 106 yards to open the second half last Sunday in New York?s 29-15 win at Indianapolis, earning him AFC special teams player of the week honors.?It?s pretty cool,? said Smith, who?s a quiet and humble guy in a Jets locker room filled with players who love to talk. ?He?s confident in himself, but there?s absolutely no ego there,? kicker Jay Feely said. ?He?s the ultimate and consummate team player, and anything he can do to help the team win, he wants to do. Here?s a guy that was a star quarterback and he?s willing to cover kicks. That says it all right there.?With punter Steve Weatherford nursing a tweaked hamstring, coach Rex Ryan was asked if Smith could also do that.?Brad probably could,? Ryan said, laughing. ?We?ll ask him. Maybe that?s our best bet.?While at Missouri, Smith became the first player in NCAA history to pass for at least 8,000 yards and run for 4,000. And the record book only starts with those accomplishments. Still, Smith didn?t project as an NFL quarterback. The Jets drafted him in the fourth round in 2006 anyway, thinking he was too good an athlete to pass up. In the win at Tampa Bay on Dec. 13, Smith became just the fifth player since 1990 to record a rush attempt, reception, pass completion, punt return and kickoff return in the same game. He also returned a blocked punt for a touchdown against New England on Nov. 22.?Here?s the thing I think you have to keep in mind with Brad Smith: just tell me any time when he has the ball in his hands that he?s not a weapon,? special teams coordinator Mike Westhoff said. ?I just don?t see it.?Smith is far from a star, but can change a game from anywhere on the field. They might need that type of playmaking presence again this weekend in a must-win game against Cincinnati?and beyond, if they make the playoffs.?He?s tough to tackle,? Ihedigbo said. ?I haven?t seen a guy tackle him one on one yet this season. He?s just that type of athlete.?Smith has seven catches for 63 yards, 14 carries for 115 yards, a 27-yard completion on a fake punt, nine kickoff returns for a 32.2-yard average, one punt return for 21 yards and 19 special-teams tackles. He?s also the quarterback whenever the Jets go to their TigerCat formation.?I had to be patient, and I?m still having to,? Smith said. ?I have to understand that there?s a lot that goes into helping a team win a game.? Such as the big play against the Colts, which gave the Jets a brief 10-9 lead and got New York believing it could pull off the victory over previously undefeated Indianapolis.?I think it was crucial because it gave us momentum,? Feely said. ?Obviously, we had to win that game and who knows if we win that game if we don?t get that return.?It also marked the longest play in Jets history, topping the 104-yard missed field goal return by Aaron Glenn in 1998. It also was 3 yards better than Justin Miller?s 103-yard kickoff return in 2006.Westhoff has been pleased with Smith?s return abilities, and thinks he finally has a replacement for the injured Leon Washington. At least for now.?Everybody knows how good Leon is,? Smith said, ?so when he comes back, I?ll just try to help him do what he does.? Smith?s teammates are calling him ?106 & Brad??a play on BET?s video show, ?106 & Park??or just ?106.? When friends ask him what he does, Smith says he?s a wide receiver, without going into the details.?My heart says I just want to make plays, pretty much,? Smith said. ?I?ll leave it at that.?Smith has moved on from the idea of playing quarterback in the NFL, where he?s just 2 for 4 for 45 yards. But he tries to use his experience to help him in his newer roles.?It?s not like you just throw everything away,? Smith said. ?You remember it and understand it and try to learn as much as you can. You go with the situation you?re given and make the most of the opportunity. That?s the situation I?m in. I do whatever they ask me to do.?
i hope we can get him more involved in our O. hopefully our next oc will call brad's # more often . . :wink:
I'll be the first to admit there was a time when I had no use for this guy and wanted him gone. I was willing to wait out the Mangini experiment with his "Jack-off All Trades and Masturbator of None" Theory wherein Smith was supposed to be all-purpose. I even remember him being red-shirted in TC. When that didn't quite pan out and he didn't seem to be skilled at any one particular thing, I saw him as a wasted space on the roster. I was wrong. This guy is finally coming around now and confident in all the different shit we can throw at other teams. We still have to find out if he's a throwing quarterback... a good, accurate one. I'm sorry Ryan tipped his hand with that at the PC, I don;t think it's in our best interest to let the other team know we might have him throwing it, but whatever. Maybe that will keep them more honest with him whenever he's under center, but I suspect the Bungles are going to make him prove he can throw before they give it much respect. The guy's a keeper, though, and I'll be the first to admit it.
Well, there have been alot of people that wanted to ship this guy off over the last year or 2. Clearly, he was not properly utilized by the former regime. I think Rex & Co. has found a niche for this kid. I wanted to keep him because his cap hit is minimal, he could play several different positions and he does a great job on ST's. With Leon out, Brad has really stepped up and helped fill in some of that void. Im glad we still have him.......
The problem with Smith was trying to label him as a wide receiver. Everyone was hoping he'd step up in the role and have more of an impact in a traditional role but the way the NFL has been trending recently Smith is the ideal type of player for a versatile team.
At first I could not stand Brad Smith because he is not a natural Receiver. He might not be the third receiver we need but he is a very good Football player.
He's been my wife's favorite player for the last 2 yrs. At first I though she just liked his name, but now I think she must be some type of football guru. I'm going to officially put her on the short list for new OC- even i'd I'm wrong she can't be worse than what we've got now.
I still think it's so damn funny- When we played Miami and they ran this most of us cried fluke, including myself. When Brad Smith runs it, it's a great play, lol. Also as mentioned earlier this will only get better with Leon thrown into the mix. It was great seeing LW yesterday too-
He's been my wife's fave player since he was drafted. I think it has something to do with every time he came in it was a trick play. Maybe women find him attractive? not sure. She bought a Missouri BSmith jersey off ebay for $15 and wore it to a couple of games, but got heckled because people thought it was a pitsburgh jersey so she doesn't wear it anymore.
I'm with on this one, I admit that I never thought that Smith would be much more than a solid special teamer. Say what you want about Schottenheimer but he's found creative ways to get Smith the ball in space this season, and Smith's definitely responded by upping his game. He's gonna be a big part of the Jets plans this weekend, you can count on that.
would he be better used as the 2nd qb and leave an active roster spot for someone else? personally, i'd rather see him out there instead of kellen clemens in the event of an injury.
he did hold all 3 fg attempts in the cold, that's true. still, not much worse than weatherford. for me, i'd rather have that extra lineman.
He's probably the best QB option on the team, and a solid special teams player. That said, he sucks as a wideout. He could maybe pass for a #4 or #5 wideout, he's not a solid #3. I wouldn't mind seeing the Jets run more plays with Smith at QB.
