Jacquies Smith Returns To Practice
September 4th, 2017
(Photo courtesy of Tampa Bay Buccaneers)
Look who was in full pads today on the pristine fields of One Buc Palace.
It’s the guy who racked up 13 1/2 sacks in the last 27 games he lined up for the Tampa Bay defense.
Yes, 27-year-old Jacquies Smith is back after missing the preseason and training camp following blowing out his ACL last September on special teams in Week 1.
He locked down a 53-man roster spot and locked down $1.8 million with his restricted free agent tender. It’s now a contract year for Smith before he becomes an unrestricted free agent after this season.
Smith has struggled to stay healthy since coming to the Bucs in September 2014, when general manager Jason Licht pounced after the Bills cut him.
Smith has been very productive when he can stay on the field. But that’s his challenge.
Do the Bucs keep Smith if they were wowed in preseason by their defensive ends? Joe wouldn’t bet on that.
But Smith is here and he’s healthy. Dirk Koetter said today that, of course, it will take time for Smith to adjust to playing real football again.
Joe suspects the Bucs will take it slowly with Smith, hoping he can be ready to be an effective situational pass rusher by midseason.
September 4th, 2017 at 1:13 pm
LS Garrison Sanborn has been brought back after putting Grif on IR.
September 4th, 2017 at 1:14 pm
If Baker can go with little to no preseason action. I am betting Jack will be back game one doing what he does best…. Sacking the QB….
Bets anyone???
September 4th, 2017 at 1:35 pm
Disagree, that they will take it easy on him until mid-season. They would put him on ir if they weren’t going to push him. Look for him in game 2 this year….pass or crash. No point in saving a place for a person who can’t play.
September 4th, 2017 at 1:40 pm
He should have a role as a backup to Noah Spence and a decent 3rd down player in for Gholston. I see him moving around a lot this year considering he is a proven sack machine with the ability to disrupt blocking schemes alongside McCoy
September 4th, 2017 at 1:47 pm
Hopefully for all concerned he is ready to pick up where he left off…
September 4th, 2017 at 1:48 pm
Im sure there were healthier better players in FA and the draft
September 4th, 2017 at 2:26 pm
Good pass rushers make around $1-million per sack… so if he gets more than 2 sacks he’s a good value. Let’s hope he gets like 7 sacks, then he’d be a great value.
September 4th, 2017 at 3:31 pm
No special teams for him, please!
He is a great pass rusher when healthy.
@Rod he averages about a sack every 2 games when he’s healthy. Has an even higher average on games he started…
September 4th, 2017 at 3:57 pm
Drew Brees just felt a cold chill.
September 4th, 2017 at 5:30 pm
He will get snaps if he is healthy, I think a lot of us thought he would be on pup but he must be close to ready
September 4th, 2017 at 6:44 pm
Obviously this would be great for the Bucs if Jack returns to form. But for me I just feel sorry for him personally. All that potential and effort and he can’t catch a break healthwise. Dude has put up with some real challenges!!! It would be nice to see him catch a break for once. Hey at least he’s got a million eight.
September 4th, 2017 at 11:54 pm
He’ll definitely see limited snaps during the early part of the season, and it’s difficult for me to believe that he’ll be productive as he gets back in football shape, but it would be AWESOME to see JS56 make the most of those obvious passing downs! Confidence is key to any players’ production, especially for a player returning from injury, so if he can be disruptive, his confidence should soar.
September 5th, 2017 at 5:16 am
No more special teams!!!
Please!!!
September 5th, 2017 at 5:13 pm
Getting Jacquies Smith back is great news. This will solidify the DE position to pressure Curter on Sunday.