Smith Would Struggle At Right Tackle
December 30th, 2016
Donovan Smith hints Bucs fans would not want to see him at right tackle.
Joe isn’t sure where this notion of Donovan Smith must be a right tackle started, but Joe suspects it was those clowns of the PFF tribe.
And we all know, if the PFF tribe writes it, then it must be football gospel. Except those fools scoff at Bill Belicheat, probably because he does’t swallow the gibberish they push and mocks them publicly. The nerve!
At any rate, unless something has drastically changed in recent weeks, the Bucs seem to be content if not happy with Donovan Smith at left tackle. But many Bucs fans are not and suggest — no idea why — that Smith ought to be a right tackle.
(Joe must put all this Smith hate into context. Bucs fans screamed — screamed! — for the team to run off Donald Penn claiming he was a gerbil’s wheel of a blocker. How’s Penn doing these days?)
Flipping guys from one side of the ball to the other on the offensive line isn’t always slick. Demar Dotson was tried out at left tackle, which is why the Bucs drafted Smith. As Jimbo Fisher famously said of the thought that football positions are interchangeable, “This ain’t PlayStation.”
Smith talked about moving from the left side to the right side like it would be a Anthony Collins-like mistake for the Bucs to make.
On Tuesday, Ali Marpet and Smith hosted “Total Access” on the Buccaneers Radio Network and both lauded teammate Kevin Pamphile for working at right tackle Saturday in New Orleans on short notice. Both Marpet and Smith noted how flipping sides is so difficult and the two went into great detail.
“Talk about shifting your body weight and changing positions of your body and movements and stuff, hats off to [Pamphile],” Smith said, “If I was to sit there [and move to right tackle], it would be all sorts of messed up.”
To hear the full conversation where Marpet and Smith detail the drastic changes it takes to change sides of the ball on the offensive line, click here and fast-forward to the 3:40 mark.
December 30th, 2016 at 8:05 am
I like d smith on team but he did get beat frequently and committed a fair amount of penalties. I’m not sold on him at lt that being said bucs have bigger needs.
December 30th, 2016 at 8:15 am
Outside of one or two games this year I thought Donovan was fine. While he is not Anthony Munzo he is not something we should be worring about. Now center, RT, DE, WR and DT are something we should be worried about. Think about it what are we dominate at? It’s not running, it’s not sustaining drives, it’s not rushing the passer and it’s not stopping the run. So what do we hang our hat on or to look at it from another angle what do teams worry about with us? Outside of stopping Evans what?
December 30th, 2016 at 8:19 am
Bucs have much bigger needs on the o-line at right tackle and center. Smith is the second least of the worries there (after Marpet). He’s an average to slightly above average left tackle and that’s good enough with so many other holes to fill this coming offseason.
December 30th, 2016 at 8:30 am
The talk started because he isn’t very good as a left tackle. With a franchise QB we need an elite LT protecting his blind side. For some reason the Joes refuse to admit the weakness of the o-line. The tackles are a weakness on both sides but I am hoping that Smith could fair better on the right side.
December 30th, 2016 at 8:32 am
Marpet was a left tackle in college, and is now a borderline pro bowler at right guard?
I understand that it’s hard to go from one side to the other in one week, I flipped back and forth in college, but given a full offseason to practice it isn’t hard.
I wouldn’t move him to right tackle anyway, I’d move him to left guard.
December 30th, 2016 at 8:35 am
TouchDown you can say that but those little things called facts say your wrong. He is most certainly and above average left tackle, not elite but there are only about 3 of those in the league so if you’re waiting for that then good luck ever being happy.
December 30th, 2016 at 8:49 am
Gotbbucs Marpet was bullying 175 lb DEs at D3 Hobart, not premier NFL sack artists.
Is DSmith a pro bowler LT right now? No. But he lines up on other teams best pass rusher nearly every snap. He’s definitely proven to be serviceable at WORST and can still get better.
December 30th, 2016 at 8:55 am
He already struggles at LT so what difference does it make? Would never happen of course because it would amount to yet another expensive mistake by our GM and he doesn’t make moves that admit mistakes. His ego will not allow it.
Licht’s carefully crafted oline is much worse than the ra ra crowd and flag wavers are willing to admit. Winston ran for his life all year in the backfield and it made every back in our stable look like garbage save a few games against bad teams early on.
But go ahead and keep holding up Doug Martin and his substance issue as the whole story and excuse for lousy rushing and offense overall. Scapegoats are primarily useful for hiding uncomfortable truths.
December 30th, 2016 at 9:24 am
WR,RB, DL are abundant in the 2017 prospects. OL is not, and for that reason I have no aversion to drafting a 8-10 year starter (Ryan Ramczk) at LT and forcing Smith to the RT side. Or converting Ramczk to RT. Cam Robinson will go early but Ramczk is in our wheel house. Now you don’t have to shuffle The rest of the OL. Drafting a RB in RD! only works Occasionally. Best two examples of 1st RD Rookie sensations in recent history are Zeke Elliot and a Guy named Martin. Everyone wants a specialty player in the first few rounds, But considering the Buc’s situation I believe those big OL men up front make modest specialty players look great. The old axiom that you build a team from the trenches back still applies on both sides of the ball.
December 30th, 2016 at 9:36 am
NDog our offensive line got beat all year both in the run game and the passing game. Winston has great pocket presence and a little mobility that bailed out the offensive line numerous times this year. The eyes don’t lie so you can point to a lack of sacks maybe as a positive but if you base it on QB pressure I would say that line was horrendous. If Glennon, with his lack of pocket awareness, had been our starting QB the sack totals would have been off the charts. I think if you moved Smith to the right tackle position during the offseason he would be serviceable as he would not be going against the top DEs week in and week out.
December 30th, 2016 at 9:43 am
…How’s Penn doing these days?
Exactly!
December 30th, 2016 at 9:57 am
Dr stroud and i did a intense personality analysis on Donavan Smith.
our joint evaluation came back with know-it-all-it is disorder.
This lazy entitled POS should shut up and get back to improving his craft or he plays wherever the coach fits.
I think he works harder to be funny at the Ali/Smith radio show than working on his footwork
The skillset needed to play left tackle is already set and proven in the NFL. You guys actually think Tampa Bay and the coaches can think or create something that is new and innovative to the NFL? LOL
You need quick feet. eom. that’s it and cant be changed…know it all smith doesn’t have it
December 30th, 2016 at 10:03 am
Does Smith belong in the NFL? Sure. Is he championship caliber? No. Every LT on the teams that are really good this year are much better than Smith. I look at him as a starter on a fair to middling team, or a backup on a championship quality team. Ain’t nothing wrong with that. If this group wins a championship, Smith will not be the starter unless he makes some vast improvements.
December 30th, 2016 at 11:11 am
Kobe, calling Smith a POS is the most ignorant , disrespectful and cowardly thing you have done in a while. Call him that to his face so we can see you piss yourself for even thinking about it. Go Bucs.
December 30th, 2016 at 11:28 am
@ birdman
I never said Marpet should be our left tackle, buddy. My point was that he switched from a right hand stance to a left and did just fine.
None of this matters as far as the future anyway. They were just making the point that in a weeks notice it is hard to do and be the starter.
Is Smith a serviceable LT? Sure. Is he ever going to be elite? No. Do we need him to be elite? Probably not if they strengthen the C and LG positions. New Orleans has rarely had an elite LT in Drew Brees time there, but they do understand that to have a clean pocket to work with the middle three guys need to be good. Jameis has no room to move up in the pocket and it really hurts his long ball accuracy because he can’t step into his throws.
December 30th, 2016 at 12:49 pm
I like our defense. I almost like our offense.
I’m not as desperate as some about WR…#3 still has a nice assortment of targets…Evans..Brate..Hump…Sims…Shep…we need just one more..draft
But while not sure who to do it or which position one thing I am concerned about is our running game. Don’t know how much was OL…or a roid deprived RB..but if we had run this year like we did last we not only would be in the playoffs we’d be a threat to go all the way….lack of WR’s an all.
I don’t know exactly how but we have to be able to run it next year. We’ve seen how #3 kills it off the play action.
December 30th, 2016 at 12:58 pm
Donovan Smith is a decent LT, he should stay at left tackle. All of the annual changes only confuses the players and slow their growth. We have 2 Ex-Bucs starting at LT in the NFL ( Mike Remmers-Carolina, Donald Penn-Oakland). It’s time for this franchise to quit the non-sense and let the players grow.
December 30th, 2016 at 1:00 pm
We need to fortify that front line St Pete. If we could somehow upgrade the left tackle spot, move Smith the right side and draft Dalvin Cook this team would be on the brink of greatness. I think a good #2 WR is a need though. That can almost certainly be accomplished via free agency. All of it starts with the o-line though. Both the running game and the passing game will flourish with good blocking and it just compounds itself because then defenses have to worry about both at all times. I would be ok with them drafting nothing but lineman for offense and defense. However, I would like to see them go after a stud running back first.
December 30th, 2016 at 3:59 pm
Draft a left tackle and move D Smith to left guard…..the beginning of the WALL!
December 30th, 2016 at 5:48 pm
It all starts up front – and our OLine has NOT done a good enough job this year.
The tackles in particular have both struggled greatly at times in pass protection as has the center. And the run blocking has seen a major regression this year across the board compared to last – regardless of which RB was carrying the ball..
Donovan Smith has not been terrible at LT – but we sure as hell need either Smith or someone else to play that incredibly important position better moving forward.
Joe – if you truly don’t understand why the talk of moving Smith to RT persists – just reread the previous sentence over and over until it sinks in.
December 30th, 2016 at 7:13 pm
I don’t know why you people keep saying the same thing over and over. Get over it they like Smith at LT and are not going to move him. He has been good the majority of time unlike Dotson or Hawley.
December 30th, 2016 at 10:46 pm
Who is they? The Joes? I think a lot of us are hoping “they” will feel the need to upgrade the left tackle position via the draft or free agency and move Smith over to the right side. I think he would be stud at left guard but then you would need to find two tackles.
December 31st, 2016 at 12:57 am
Donovan Smith was not the issue this year. He will continue to improve and get better and reading his opponents to avoid being a step behind off the snap. Quickness isn’t all physical, better preparation can go a long way.
Joe Hawley however was an issue. I was hoping he would take the reigns over from E.Smith and run with it but he has only been a slight upgrade at best. Winston needs a top-5 center so he can step up into the pocket.
Sweezy at LG should help, if he comes back 100%, especially in the run game which will in turn take pressure off the pass game.
Ali Marpet is future pro-bowler, keep grinding.
Dotson needs to be replaced as well,no real push in the run game anymore and slow off the snap on passing plays.
Pamphile could hold the RT spot for a year but he’d be much better as a back-up that can keep cross-training inside and out.