Brad Smith: A return to Jets 'would be really cool'

BY NICK ST. DENIS

Brad Smith started his career with the New York Jets, and he wouldn't mind finishing it with them.

The soon-to-be 30-year-old utility player was released by the Buffalo Bills Friday after two and a half seasons of not quite finding his niche on a team that has been in transition.

Smith was on injured reserve with a rib injury he suffered during the preseason but has been cleared by doctors to return to the field. According to Tim Graham of The Buffalo News, Smith was able to "negotiate his release" in hopes of landing with a new team.

Special teams to decide Bills' wideout battle

BY NICK ST. DENIS

The Buffalo Bills injected a lot of youth and ambition into their wide receiver corps this offseason. In training camp, they're letting it sort itself out.

After veteran Stevie Johnson, the remaining spots on the receiver depth chart are mostly wide open.

Young speeders T.J. Graham and Marquise Goodwin are jockeying for position alongside Robert Woods and Da'Rick Rogers. Add in returners Marcus Easley, Chris Hogan and Brad Smith, and the Bills' Week 1 lineup could take on many different looks.

Brad Smith playing 'translator' between QBs, WRs

BY NICK ST. DENIS

Brad Smith has been the definition of "utility player" since entering the NFL in 2006 with the New York Jets.

Now in his third offseason with the Buffalo Bills and under a brand new regime, Smith is putting his wisdom to use by helping streamline communication between the two offensive positions he's been dangling between the past half decade. (photo: Doug Kerr, Flickr)

“I can talk to Kevin Kolb and E.J. Manuel, then come over to the receivers and kind of translate it,” Smith told Jay Skurski of The Buffalo News. “And vice versa. I definitely see the benefits of it."

Bills’ Brad Smith up for any role coach has for him

BY DAN BEGNOCHE

Buffalo Bills utility man Brad Smith is one of the more versatile offensive weapons in the NFL.

But last season, Smith was given just 28 opportunities to do so last season, not counting his special teams work. In those 28 tries, Smith was split evenly between pass and run, tallying 268 yards and three touchdowns. (photo: Doug Kerr, Flickr)

Much of the blame for last season’s offensive woes landed on former coach Chan Gailey, who struggled to find a successful balance with not only Smith, but the running backs, as well.

Arians: Colts prepping for 'two best returners in NFL'

BY DAN BEGNOCHE

After allowing a punt return for a touchdown in a loss to the New England Patriots last week, Indianapolis Colts interim coach Bruce Arians knew something needed to be done about the team's return coverage, and fast.

He'll find out just how much improvement can be done in one week Sunday when his team faces off against the Buffalo Bills, who tout the league's most explosive special teams squad. (photo: Matt Britt, Flickr)

As he has for the entire season, Bills returner Leodis McKelvin leads the league in punt return average, and thanks to last Thursday's return against the Miami Dolphins, he leads all returners with two touchdowns.

McKelvin's punt return average is an astounding five yards more than any other player in the league, and if he can continue that trend, he'll be the first player to average more than 21 yards a return since 1961 and could perhaps break the all-time, single-season record.

Gailey: Brad Smith at WR 'will be a little while yet'

BY NICK ST. DENIS

Vince Young and Tyler Thigpen are having a hard enough time performing like No. 2 quarterbacks, so the Bills are making sure their No. 3 is up to speed just in case.

All-purpose player Brad Smith, who will be listed as the Bills' third quarterback on game day because of his versatility, is reportedly working strictly at quarterback as of now despite the likeliness that he'll be used more as a returner, receiver, running back and option signal-caller.

"That will be a little while yet," Bills coach Chan Gailey told the media Wednesday after being asked when Smith would get some work with the receivers. "We want to keep giving him (practice at) quarterback. He will be the third quarterback going into the season so he has to know the offense to finish a game."

"We have to get him enough where he is comfortable, well as comfortable as he is going to get taking as many limited reps as he is taking. We have to get him that before we take him to receiver."

Gailey: Wildcat requires the right person, Smith is it

BY DAN BEGNOCHE

For the majority of OTAs, Bills all-purpose player Brad Smith has donned a red jersey. That changed at the end of last week, and according to head coach Chan Gailey, he’ll be wearing a lot of different hats as well this upcoming season.

Smith worked out with the receivers Friday, a role that became mostly permanent last season as the team suffered multiple injuries at the position. But with a healthy, deep crew of wideouts ready to fight for a starting spot this preseason, Gailey is more than happy to move Smith all over the field.

“He worked at quarterback, which we needed him to do that,” Gailey told the media Friday. “He’ll go into the season, unless something major changes which I don’t foresee, he’ll be the third quarterback. He’s got to have enough quarterback knowledge to get you out of a game. He’s a very good special team’s player, lines up and does that. He can play receiver and help us there. There are a lot of things.”

One of those things will be working at reinstituting the Wildcat into the playbook. Gailey told reporters Friday that he would have liked to use Smith in that role more last year if it weren't for the amount of injuries. But now that the roster is back to full health, they will definitely be practicing more in that formation.

“We still plan to use it ... We’re going to keep it," Gailey said. "We’re going to keep working with it. The better Brad gets at quarterback … now he’s a threat to throw it and run it and that helps your Wildcat.”

Reasoning for Bills' focus on Smith at QB unclear

BY NICK ST. DENIS

Two years ago, then-Jets utility player Brad Smith was arguably the NFL's best kick returner, taking two returns to the end zone and averaging an NFL-best (for players with more than 21 returns) 28.6 yards a return.

Three years before that, Smith made 32 receptions as a receiver and caught two touchdown passes. And as a first-year Bill, Smith made 23 receptions last season, including a 36-yard touchdown catch.

Oh, and he's also rushed for a touchdown in each of the last three seasons.

So it's only fitting that the Bills are putting Smith's focus on being a quarterback. Except not really.

So far through the Bills' OTAs and beginning of minicamp, Smith has been working exclusively as a quarterback. Despite the fact that Buffalo is paying Ryan Fitzpatrick franchise money and signed veteran quarterback (and proven winner) Vince Young as Fitzpatrick's backup, Buffalo has felt inclined to bother trying to make Smith a quarterback first, even if he's better at everything else.

Smith was a converted receiver entering the NFL, having played quarterback for his entire college career at Missouri. He mainly excelled at running the football and was sub-par mechanically and accuracy-wise, which is why he projected as a wideout, running back and option quarterback.

With No. 1 set, Bills' WR corps will settle into place

BY DAN BEGNOCHE

Every wide receiving corps needs a No. 1. The Bills took care of that Monday with the re-signing of Stevie Johnson. Now, Buffalo will look to fill the gaps around Johnson to round out its air attack for quarterback Ryan Fitzpatrick.

Buffalo currently has a slew of receivers on its roster, a mix of young and old, and what the team will look like in terms of a starting squad remains to be seen.

The Bills saw a number of young players step up throughout last season as they struggled through injuries, and it will be interesting to see who is still around after free agency and the draft have passed. Here's a few names you will most likely see come training camp and beyond:

Smith to be a factor for Bills moving forward

Posted by Nick St. Denis

With all of the Buffalo Bills' injury issues at the wide receiver position, all-purpose player Brad Smith had a chance to make a splash Sunday.

Even better, it was against his former team.

Smith, who was a career New York Jet before signing with the Bills in the 2011 offseason, caught four passes for 77 yards, including a tip-and-catch touchdown in the third quarter to knot the score at 21-21.

Smith to face Jets, Westhoff for first time

Does Brad Smith miss New York Jets special teams coach Mike Westhoff?

“Sure I do,” Smith told the New York media Wednesday via conference call.

Westhoff, who is considered one of the best in the business, coached Smith for his first five years in the NFL and saw the all-purpose player thrive on kick return. The Jets were unable to fit Smith into their plans after he became a free agent during the offseason, so the Buffalo Bills scooped him up.

“Honestly, he’s an unbelievable coach, not just Xs and Os but as far as pushing guys to reach their maximum potential,” Smith said of Westhoff. “Sometimes he can be very harsh. As I was there longer, I learned to understand him and his method. I have a lot of respect for Mike.”

Sunday, when the Bills host the Jets, Smith will face his former team for the first time.

"It’s going to be crazy," Smith said. "It’s kind of a surreal experience just knowing those guys and playing with just about all of them."

During his Thursday press conference, Westhoff was asked about facing Smith, who returned three kickoffs for touchdowns over his last two years with the Jets.

"It would help if he'd quit calling me harsh," Westhoff joked. "I was disappointed he said that to tell you the truth. I don't think I'm harsh. I don't know, maybe I am. I wasn't harsh with him, you know how much I like Brad. Brad did a great job for us.”

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Bills should get all-purpose Smith involved

In addition to using running back C.J. Spiller as a receiver to help remedy their thinning wideout corps, the Buffalo Bills will probably focus on working in former New York Jets lethal weapon Brad Smith at receiver more often, as well.

Smith, who is listed as a quarterback on the team’s roster but can play virtually any skill position on offense, is a threat whenever on the field, regardless of where he lines up. With the (little bit of) extra time to work him more into the offense throughout the bye week, the Bills should be taking time to do just that.

So far this season, the Bills have ran the ball with Smith 15 times, good for a touchdown and six first downs. He’s also caught two passes, one good for a first down, and returned five kickoffs.

Bills coach Chan Gailey admits they’d like to get Smith more involved, and it’s on the “list of things to do” throughout their game-less Week 7, but it’s not at the top of their list. It should be pretty close, though.

A six-year pro out of Missouri, Smith has always been under-used, but that could also be a reason for his success. Some games, we won’t even see him take the field; other games, he’s the difference maker. The key with keeping Smith as productive as he has been is knowing when and where to use him, without playing him so much that he loses his edge over those unfamiliar with him.

The Jets only got seven touchdowns out of Smith over his five years there, but he was continually the X-factor in multiple ways. It’s not so much quantity as it is quality when it comes to Smith.

As a punt and kick returner, he uses dashing speed and scary acceleration to try and make something happen. He’s had success doing so, yet still, the Jets didn’t always use him as a returner, and the Bills haven’t yet either. Smith did have the most returns (and yardage) of his career last year with New York, though. His 50 kickoff returns were good for well over 1,000 yards and a pair of touchdowns. And, as an indication of what he’s capable of, Smith’s only return touchdown for the Jets in 2009 was a 106-yard kickoff return vs. the Indianapolis Colts.

As a backfield threat — lining up under center at quarterback, as a true running back or in the slot — Smith certainly has plenty to offer, too. With the Jets, that’s where he illustrated the most value. If Gang Green was struggling to move the ball, it’d switch up the offense and bring in Smith for a Wildcat look. Even when it was virtually known by the defense that Smith would be tucking the ball away and running with it, he still found production. And, if the run looked like it wasn’t going to work, well … Smith could just throw the ball. I mean, he is (technically) a QB.

Where the Bills need Smith to be most effective, though, is split out at receiver. Buffalo needs help at that position and Smith has the potential to make a large impact. He already has become a marquee player in the NFL despite his sporadic appearances. And playing quarterback most of his life, he knows routes, knows what an ideal pass is and knows what to look for when evaluating defenses at the line of scrimmage.

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Bills' all-purpose Smith has more purpose

It should be Brad Smith time for the Buffalo Bills.

With wide receiver Donald Jones out for four-to-six weeks to a high ankle sprain and fellow wideout Roscoe Parrish already done for the year, the Bills are getting dangerously thin at wide receiver.

Naaman Roosevelt made five catches Sunday filling in for Jones, but Buffalo is going to need more to continue with some of their spread receiver sets. The team is certainly doing its due diligence in the free agent market, but Buffalo will likely look in house for the short-term fix – Smith.

“We’re going to have to,” Bills’ coach Chan Gailey told the media Wednesday about the prospect of using Smith more. “It’s all hands on deck this week and maybe for the next few weeks.”

Smith, who is categorized as a QB/WR on Buffalo’s roster and is the third quarterback listed on the depth chart, is plenty familiar with the wide receiver position.

The converted quarterback from Missouri recorded a career-high 32 receptions for 325 yards and two touchdowns for the New York Jets in 2007. He’s had 66 catches in his five-and-a-half-year career and made two receptions for 25 yards this season.

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