Clifton “Peanut” Smith Now Just A Memory
September 5th, 2010
It wasn’t a real surprise that Clifton “Peanut” Smith was cut loose by the Bucs today when the pewter pirates signed a couple of unheralded players off the waiver wire, one being a running back.
Smith, though a former Pro Bowl returner, was on thin ice due to his illness and his habit of putting the ball on the ground.
Courageously, Smith galloped with gout this preseason, but it was his past that caught up with him (fumbles).
With the return of (run) Michael (run) Spurlock, the return ability of Sammie Stroughter and the emergence of Preston Parker, Smith was expendable.
Had Smith been able to take care of the ball better, he may have had a lot more touches as a running back, and thus secured a job. That didn’t happen and now Smith is looking for work.
Joe hopes Peanut finds a new job. He’s a good guy and a talented guy. He just needs to find a way, some way, to hold onto the ball.
September 5th, 2010 at 8:22 pm
A little puzzled. A guy who can take it to the house in the return game would seem more valuable than a couple of total nobodies.
September 5th, 2010 at 8:30 pm
It’s too bad. He was a great return man. Probably the best one they have ever had. Hopefully the others can get the job done over the course of the season. I wonder if the Phins will pick up Smith. They need a good return man.
September 5th, 2010 at 8:36 pm
Smith did so great things here. I wish him the best of luck. But a running back who can’t hold on to the ball is like a WR who can’t catch the ball(Clayton), if ya can’t do that, everything else you do well isnt enough ta save ya. Too bad, but good luck peanut and Mr. Hardman
September 5th, 2010 at 8:46 pm
2 concussions are enough Peanut. Retire.
September 5th, 2010 at 9:02 pm
He was a bright spot on a dismal roster and was fun to watch. I wish him well in the future and will root for him on every Sunday he doesn’t play the Bucs. Thanks Peanut and best of luck.
September 5th, 2010 at 9:06 pm
Lumpkin has the ability to be good. He played for GA, but was injured his senior year, and he split time with other quality backs. He was recruited heavily out of high school. He was injured in GB too; I hope he is not another injury prone runner for Tampa. I also hope he finds his potential here as well. The injuries are most likely why he went undrafted. Remember, EG was undrafted as well…Priest Holmes too, not to mention Clifton Smith. Welcome to the team Kregg, I hope you run better than your parents spell.
September 5th, 2010 at 9:09 pm
You may be right Jimbuc. Concussions and return man don’t mix very well.
Would hate to see another Jerry Eckwood.
September 5th, 2010 at 9:10 pm
Dude’s name was Peanut
September 5th, 2010 at 9:30 pm
I agree with Eric. How do they release a pro bowl returner in favor of a bunch of nobodies? There wasn’t one single player on the 53 man roster worth releasing more than Peanut? He is still our best return man and can do anything you ask him to do, concussions or no concussions. And who cares if he fumbles on running plays?? As I recall, he never even got a chance at running ball this preseason or really at all in his career. He got a few carries against Washington last year, fumbled once, and that was it. He never got a chance after that.
And why are some convinced that Spurlock can be as effective as Smith? All he did last year was return that one punt for a touchdown against the Saints and it was in the 2nd to last game of the season. It was just one play and also two games is not enough time to determine how good he is. Stroughter did okay last year. But neither him or Spurlock are as spectacular as Smith in the return game. It’s also sad how we release one of the few pro bowl players that we have.
Good luck Clifton, I wish you well.
September 5th, 2010 at 10:04 pm
Later PNut. I sure wish we had replaced you with LeGarrette Blount (who was moved to the Titans practice squad today) instead of this Lumpkin dude.
September 5th, 2010 at 10:09 pm
Blount is trouble waiting to happen. Forget the dick.
September 5th, 2010 at 10:15 pm
I agree Dew, Blount is an a$$.
Bye Peanut. I’ll miss ya man. 🙁
September 5th, 2010 at 10:17 pm
Yeah, Peanut was great. Hope he finds another gig.
September 5th, 2010 at 10:21 pm
Concussions+fumbles+gout=CUT!! Three strikes your out, I wish him well.
September 5th, 2010 at 10:27 pm
Briscoe’s stats at Kansas.
2009- 84 RECEPTIONS 1,337 YARDS 84 TOUCHDOWNS
CAREER STATS- 218 RECEPTIONS 3,240 YDS 31 TOUCHDOWNS
September 5th, 2010 at 10:29 pm
Briscoe’s stats at Kansas.
2009- 84 RECEPTIONS, 1,337 YARDS, 9 TOUCHDOWNS
CAREER STATS- 218 RECEPTIONS, 3,240 YDS, 31 TOUCHDOWNS
September 5th, 2010 at 10:30 pm
How exactly is Spurlock a nobody? I recall him with a return for a TD.
Also Stroughter and Parker have shown the explosiveness.
The bottom line is Smith fumbles. Turnovers are killers, especially for a young team that will struggle.
September 5th, 2010 at 10:42 pm
Patrick, Spurlock didn’t just return the punt that tied the game against the Saints last year, he also returned the first kickoff in Bucs’ history in 2007. But the key here is that when Spurlock (a converted QB) was given the opportunity to lineup with the offense this preseason, he nailed it. He played very well, and would likely fill in well should the Bucs suffer a rash of injuries. Plus, he plays great special teams. All Clifton could do was return kicks, and he had become an injury risk with his concussions AND most recently, gout. I loved Peanut like everyone else, but I think this was an ok move. The Bucs needed a 3rd RB who could defend kickoffs as well as a guy who has a bigger body at the RB position. The emergence of Huggins and Spurlock make Clifton irrelevant. I hope he gets another gig as a return guy.
September 5th, 2010 at 10:42 pm
We really need to trade two receivers. The best options are Brown and Stovall. Briscoe won’t last long on our practice squad. Any team willing to add him to there 53 man roster can claim him. Lets go young with promise IMO.
September 5th, 2010 at 10:44 pm
Or release.
September 6th, 2010 at 12:41 am
I think you’re probably right Dew. I would look for Briscoe to replace Brown shortly.
September 6th, 2010 at 12:57 am
Patrick, the guys got 4 fumbles on 18 offensive touches in the regular season over the last two years. Unacceptable. I like Clifton but there are other players on the team that are much more multi-dimensional than what he is and the drop off in return ability in those guys isn’t nearly as great as what he seem to think it is. Add in the history of concusions and some sort of gout in his knees and this was somewhat of an easy decision for Dominik.
September 6th, 2010 at 7:16 am
Amazing how all the bucs “lovers” will turn on a guy as soon as Mr. Dom releases him.
September 6th, 2010 at 7:17 am
I don’t like this move at all. When I saw the subject of my One Buc Club email, stating that the Bucs claimed 2 players off waivers, I just knew they had to cut someone I liked.
So they cut one of the few pro bowlers on the team??? Newsflash, Stovall should have been the one cut, not smith.
With all the talent at WR, he is the weakest link there. I agree with Joe, our RB game is the weak spot on this team right now. We need young guys there, so that we can hope some cream rises to the top. As much as I like Caddy and Graham, neither of them is the solution anymore. Graham had possibilities early on, but was never utilized properly.
Huggins has a chance to be good, but lets face it…even if he rushed for 1,000 to 1,100 yards this year (which won’t happen since he’s the 3rd guy), it would not be enough.
Caddy has a horrible ypr average. He’s a great comeback story but he should have been cut years ago…or at least someone drafted to be the heir.
All of that said…there is a silver lining to all this. Michael Spurlock.
When he was cut the first time, I hated it. I felt the team had given up on him far too soon. For heavens sake, they kept him over the likes of Clayton, Stovall Clark and others. He provided a great otion on special teams, which should have bought him the time to develop as a WR.
Thankfully, being cut did not keep him from working on his skills. It’s great to see him back in the fold, and although it’s unlikely he will become a star reciever here (because of Benn, Williams and Stroughter), he’ll have a chance to become a star returner and a high quality backup.
The other plus to Spurlock being here is his previous QB experience. With him in the game, the coaches can actually use the Wildcat unexpectedly, whereas most teams that use it have to put an actual QB into the game, which makes it obvious.
I suspect we will see a lot of gimmick plays this year…courtesy of Michael Spurlock.
September 6th, 2010 at 7:22 am
@gotbbucs and all the others who mentioned the fumbles:
Check the grewat RBs of the past, Sanders, Barber (Tiki), etc. Most of them had 3-5 fumbles a year at the beginning of their careers.
Heck, I remember Barber having the football taped to his hand for a week to teach him to hold onto it. It was that big a concern for him.
So don’t sit there and say the fumble problem is a reason to cut Peanut, when we all know that is one of the most correctable RB issues there is. The issue here is coaches and fans giving up on quality players too soon and refusing to give up on crappy players for too long (Stovall).
September 6th, 2010 at 7:23 am
(sorry for the typos…huge fingers, nerve damage and darkness make for plenty of them, hehe)
September 6th, 2010 at 7:35 am
Added Information:
“The Buccaneers also began the construction of their eight-man practice squad for the season, bringing back three players they had released on Saturday: safety Vince Anderson, defensive end George Johnson and tight end Ryan Purvis. The team can hold up to eight players on its practice squad and will likely fill out the unit before the first full practice of the week on Monday.”
September 6th, 2010 at 8:45 am
Clifton was a 1 trick pony and had little to offer elsewhere.
Those who want Blount – he’s not worth it. Remember when he said punching that guy “is not him”, “not that kind of guy”, well, have a peek into Titans camp: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=BUG2SqGuutQ
September 6th, 2010 at 9:03 am
Looks like great pickups! Did a Lil research, apparently Mr.Lumpkin is a talented back, with speed and POWER, a different look than what we had. The biggest weakness in our original 53 man roster, was at Backup center.we know what happened when Faine got hurt last year. I watched the Miami game closely. The Miami nose tackle was living in our backfield. I personally LOVE Zuttah, so I went to Steve White’s site. He also believed that our option for backup center( not naming any names!) is, eh, inadequate. Adding Lawson gives us a potentially great backup at center and guard. Hopefully Hardman ends up on the practice squad, making the final 53 as an undrafted FA, only to get cut 24 hours later, sucks. The Bricoe signing is unbelievable. Our stable of young WRs is incredible. Freeman may miss an experienced Wr this year, but he’s gotta be excited about having that stable in the future
September 6th, 2010 at 9:13 am
For most guys to make a probowl, they have to be hands down amazing and beat out hundreds of other players. For guys who play positions like Kicker, punter, or kick returner where this is only one per team, they only have to be the best out of the other 15 in thier Conference. So back in 2008 before the concussions and gout and whatever, Peanut was better than the other 15 returners in the NFC. Good for him. Some of you seem to think this makes him a HoFer.
September 6th, 2010 at 9:44 am
Smith was finished .
The same way Antonio Bryant was finished….it still amazes me how so many of you fans are so slow to relaize when this is the case. You’re always the last to know…
September 6th, 2010 at 12:21 pm
Not a one of you has the balls to eat crow when Smith is signed by another team and becomes a premiere back 2-3 years from now.
September 6th, 2010 at 12:52 pm
“becomes a premiere back 2-3 years from now.”……
a RB either has it does not……somehow Smith is going to fantasticaly become a Stud RB in 2-3 years in so lame…..I hope he makes it but I’ve seen it all before
September 6th, 2010 at 1:17 pm
Premiere back.
BWahahahahahahahhahahahahahahahahahahah!!!
September 6th, 2010 at 3:44 pm
@RastaMon
You are right, you have seen it becfore. Try Thomas Jones. You know that guy, right? He played here and fans like you and Radio called for his head.
Then he went on to become a “Premiere Back” for years.
Not that I expect fair weather fans to actually get that.
September 6th, 2010 at 4:06 pm
Wow Peter Deucher really doesn’t know what the heck he is talking about.
The guy is a fumbler. That is career ending without the injuries.
Second, Thomas Jones was a first round draft pick, and is talented enough to be an NFL starter but has always been the odd man out on every team he plays on.
To compare Peanut to Jones is freakishly delusional… at best.
And enough of your heart felt tldr comments. I seriously doubt they get read, unless someone wants a good laugh.
September 6th, 2010 at 4:53 pm
@Javier
Apparently you had no answer to previous posts pointing out the fumbles of quality RBs in the past. And if people are tired of anyone, it would be you, friend. But then, you already know that. That’s why you attack anyone that is a threat to your opinions.
September 6th, 2010 at 6:52 pm
Rest in Peanut.