is Kevin Smith worth a roster spot? (1 Viewer)

[PR Sparty]

Drop or hold??

 

[Banger]

I guess it depends on what you'd drop him for. At this point he looks to be #3 on the depth chart behind Leshoure/Bell and probably would only get touches if Leshoure went down. Probably droppable for a Lamar Miller or similar type player.

 

[Ace zero1]

I'm dropping him for bennet on the giants

 

[HF21]

I will probably end up dropping him as soon as I need a bye week replacement or for the next hot ww add.

For now he's on the end of my bench awaiting his pink slip.

 

[BobbyLayne]

If you own Mikel and can afford the premiums, good insurance. You don't have to be a talented running back to be productive in that offense. But you have a shallow bench, drop him to cover bye weeks.

 

[rickyg]

This is a great question.

 

[VA703]

i just cant believe after his week 1 performance he is the #3

unbelievable

 

[Dought Man]

Why anyone thought Kevin Smith was in the Lions "plans" is way beyond me. Pure stop gap.

 

[El Truth]

i just cant believe after his week 1 performance he is the #3unbelievable

It really is hard to believe. I didn't watch the game, but I've read a couple of things saying Leshoure looked good. He only put up 100 yards on 26 carries (3.8 ypc) with a long of 12 against the freaking Titans. I really find it hard to believe Smith wouldn't have easily done as well or better. And then to have Bell play late over Smith.

 

[jim k]

If you have leshoure he is a decent handcuff. Hard to trade a guy who will get zero touches. Smith is not in their long term plans and if best comes back he might be dropped for bell.

 

[El Truth]

Why anyone thought Kevin Smith was in the Lions "plans" is way beyond me. Pure stop gap.

I don't think anyone thought he was the Lions RB of the future. But no one really knew what to expect from Leshoure. And I'm sure most people were expecting at least a pretty even split this week and not for him to drop off of the face of the earth.

 

[red stripe]

I was really surprised that he didn't see the field at all. It makes me wonder if he's not on the roster bubble now given how much the Lions need anyone that can make a play on special teams.

 

[Grahamburn]

Not basing this on anything, but you almost have to think Smith said/did something after LeShoure was named the starter. It doesn't make any sense for him not to be utilized at all.

 

[VA703]

Not basing this on anything, but you almost have to think Smith said/did something after LeShoure was named the starter. It doesn't make any sense for him not to be utilized at all.

thats what im thinking.. something behind the scenes we havnt heard about yet..you dont just drop to the third spot

 

[Joe Summer]

He's only rosterable as a handcuff for Leshoure in very large leagues.

 

[The_Fonz]

I saw him on the field for one play, then the Lions called a time out and Leshore was back in. I am dumping him.

 

[FF Ninja]

i just cant believe after his week 1 performance he is the #3unbelievable

It really is hard to believe. I didn't watch the game, but I've read a couple of things saying Leshoure looked good. He only put up 100 yards on 26 carries (3.8 ypc) with a long of 12 against the freaking Titans. I really find it hard to believe Smith wouldn't have easily done as well or better. And then to have Bell play late over Smith.

Yes, hard to be excited about 3.8 ypc against the Titans that allowed 6.0 ypc to Ridley and 4.8 ypc to Jackie Battle. I would absolutely bet that Kevin Smith would've had more yards on less touches.

 

[jon_mx]

It is a great idea to have J. Bell's backup just in case.

 

[Resident A]

I saw him on the field for several plays, but they were obviously all passing plays & he didn't touch the ball.

 

[solorca]

I am hanging on to him in a dynasty league, just on the off chance he catches on with another team at some point.

I wouldn't put it past the Lions to trade him off either.

 

[Dought Man]

Coach knows they have to try to run the ball to keep that terrible defense off the field more. Smith would go back to being a nice RB2 if LeShoure gets dinged up down the line. Hard to keep him if you have a 5 man bench.

 

[49er fan]

Why anyone thought Kevin Smith was in the Lions "plans" is way beyond me. Pure stop gap.

I don't think anyone thought he was the Lions RB of the future. But no one really knew what to expect from Leshoure. And I'm sure most people were expecting at least a pretty even split this week and not for him to drop off of the face of the earth.

exactly. if they hate him this much, why didn't they have Joique Bell be the starting back to start the season? I can see why LeShoure got the starting nod, but i don't understand why Bell leapfrogged him. weird.

 

[scothawk]

Im amazed at how quick the fall from grace was. Given how poor the Titans D has been previously, it couldnt have hurt to give him a couple of series to see if he had the better skill set for the match up.

Im guessing he was either rested (again, why?) or in the dog house.

Im holding in dynasty leagues for the usual reasons. One exception is my 15 player roster league where he was great because receiving yards count double, but I cannot afford him to bring in duck eggs.

 

[D'OHtis]

Cut him before the game yesterday.

I did it more because i think Jahvid Best does return. (Meaning Smith would have no 3rd down role) That Bell was in for significant portions of the SF wasn't a great sign.

I didn't think Smith would get zero carries yesterday, but didn't think he'd be worth a roster spot regardless.

I'm not sure Smith is a lock to even finish the year on Lions roster if/when Best comes back.

 

[kegger]

I will probably end up dropping him as soon as I need a bye week replacement or for the next hot ww add. For now he's on the end of my bench awaiting his pink slip.

Yep same way I would/do treat him..Barring an injury I don't see him getting much playing time now.

 

[bucksoh]

dynasty he is a hold, redraft he is a drop.

 

[MAC_32]

As the LeShoure owner in my leagues I'm waiting for his owners to dump him so I can add the cuff. If LeShoure is out I don't think Bell sees the uptick in touches, I think he has the same role and Smith assumes his former role.

 

[Mr. Soup Nazi]

i just cant believe after his week 1 performance he is the #3unbelievable

I can't believe I faced his crappy owner week 1 and lost by 5.

 

[Black]

dynasty he is a hold, redraft he is a drop.

This has been a very good thread...appreciate everyone's input, even if it's 'what the heck are they doing."My guess is that Ke Smith is the backup to LeShoure, with Joique serving a 3rd down or change of pace role. Jahvid seems like he would replace the 3rd down role if/when he returns. When healthy, Kevin Smith has subbed in as the 'do-all' type RB, so maybe he's a 'crack glass in case of emergency' RB now.Also, based on all of the very sudden and long TEN TDs, was DET way up at some point in this game before TEN got back into it? If that was the case, you would try to salt the game away with your grinder. I need to watch the replay this week and see if game script caused some of Ke Smith's lack of use.

 

[The Jerk]

dynasty he is a hold, redraft he is a drop.

This has been a very good thread...appreciate everyone's input, even if it's 'what the heck are they doing."My guess is that Ke Smith is the backup to LeShoure, with Joique serving a 3rd down or change of pace role. Jahvid seems like he would replace the 3rd down role if/when he returns. When healthy, Kevin Smith has subbed in as the 'do-all' type RB, so maybe he's a 'crack glass in case of emergency' RB now.Also, based on all of the very sudden and long TEN TDs, was DET way up at some point in this game before TEN got back into it? If that was the case, you would try to salt the game away with your grinder. I need to watch the replay this week and see if game script caused some of Ke Smith's lack of use.

Drives in first quarter:3 for 13 (0-0) 3 for 15 (3-0 Det)2 for 5 (6-3 Det) 1 for -1 (10-6 Tenn) 2nd Qtr 4 for 19 (17-6 Tenn) 3 for 10 (17-9 Tenn) 16 for 61 thru the first half 3rd Qtr 2 for 7, TD (20-9 Tenn) 3 for 6 (20-16 Tenn) 4th Qtr 1 rec, 10 yards (same drive continuing from third quarter, 20-16 Tenn) 5 for 26 (20-19 Tenn) 2 rec, 17 yards (27-27)26 for 100 for game, 3 rec 27 yards

 

[D'OHtis]

dynasty he is a hold, redraft he is a drop.

I'd actually have just the opposite of this. He's not going to contend for starting spot elsewhere. Realize it took him half a season to find a job period last year (not highly thought of around the league). And it look him 2 year long injuries to 2 different RB's to get a sniff.The Detroit Lion organization has more loyalty to him than anyone else. And next year, you just add in a fresh crop of college RB's (with less miles and cheap long term deals) he's contending with.If you'll got 30 man rosters in a dynasty league, sure he's probably worth a shot. We've seen his upside. It's not good. And he can't stay healthy and productive over any length of time.

 

[SameSongNDance]

He's essentially turned into another handcuff at this point. I've never seen a RB go from RB2 status (in PPR) to a blatant RB4/5 without seeing a dip in production or succumbing to an injury. IMO, maybe I'm bias because I really like Smith, but I think what DET did to him last week was extremely disrespectful. He's come in and helped them when they were in need, and they treat him like a piece of trash. Leshoure, IMO, looked just as advertised. He looked like a power back with zero burst who could only manage a measly 3.8 YPC against one of the worst rushing defenses in the league. He'll thrive on volume alone, but I don't want to be caught dead starting him when he runs into CHI, SEA and MIN down the road. His days will be extremely TD dependent. Just my 2 cents.

 

[djmich]

He's essentially turned into another handcuff at this point. I've never seen a RB go from RB2 status (in PPR) to a blatant RB4/5 without seeing a dip in production or succumbing to an injury. IMO, maybe I'm bias because I really like Smith, but I think what DET did to him last week was extremely disrespectful. He's come in and helped them when they were in need, and they treat him like a piece of trash. Leshoure, IMO, looked just as advertised. He looked like a power back with zero burst who could only manage a measly 3.8 YPC against one of the worst rushing defenses in the league. He'll thrive on volume alone, but I don't want to be caught dead starting him when he runs into CHI, SEA and MIN down the road. His days will be extremely TD dependent. Just my 2 cents.

Agree with all of this, only thing that would add is that this was Leshoure's first game and he certainly can improve (one would expect that he will, but how much is the question).

 

[SameSongNDance]

He's essentially turned into another handcuff at this point. I've never seen a RB go from RB2 status (in PPR) to a blatant RB4/5 without seeing a dip in production or succumbing to an injury. IMO, maybe I'm bias because I really like Smith, but I think what DET did to him last week was extremely disrespectful. He's come in and helped them when they were in need, and they treat him like a piece of trash. Leshoure, IMO, looked just as advertised. He looked like a power back with zero burst who could only manage a measly 3.8 YPC against one of the worst rushing defenses in the league. He'll thrive on volume alone, but I don't want to be caught dead starting him when he runs into CHI, SEA and MIN down the road. His days will be extremely TD dependent. Just my 2 cents.

Agree with all of this, only thing that would add is that this was Leshoure's first game and he certainly can improve (one would expect that he will, but how much is the question).

Agreed, he is most definitely rusty. Still, he is very much as advertised. A team who posses an DL with a strong interior, or a strong DL in general, will more than likely stuff him on numerous plays.

 

[Frenchy Fuqua]

I think Kevin Smith is a definite dump. Although if you're looking for a silver lining, Leshoure had only 424 rush attempts in three years at Illinois. It remains to be seen how he'll respond to 20-25 carries each week.

 

[Goldfinger007]

I think Kevin Smith is a definite dump. Although if you're looking for a silver lining, Leshoure had only 424 rush attempts in three years at Illinois. It remains to be seen how he'll respond to 20-25 carries each week.

I disagree. I don't think you drop him unless you're desperate for the roster spot. Leshoure had a pretty good stat line yesterday, but it was deceiving. Tenn showed him zero respect. Zero! I cant remember a game with the safeties playing that far off the line for that much of the game. They were even dropping LB'ers and he still couldn't make them pay. The whole point of them trying to run the ball more is to open up the passing game and in particular loosen up the coverage on Mega. That didn't happen yesterday and its not going to get any easier for them. If he can't make them pay for for dropping those safeties, they're going to have to scrap that strategy and just sling it 50 times per game. Kevin Smith is the better receiver, so I could see them coming back to him.

 

[ratbast]

He has to be hurt.

 

[SameSongNDance]

Coach Jim Schwartz said he intended for Kevin Smith to be the third-down back in the Week 3 loss to the Titans.Schwartz declined to publicly demote Smith. "That was more about the situations [the Titans] were in," he said. "As the game went on, [Mikel] Leshoure was doing well in some of those roles and we kept him on the field. We use all those guys. There's really no depth chart when it comes to our running backs. They're all in different packages and they're all valuable to us." The truth is that Smith received zero touches and lost backup duties to Joique Bell.

This is coach speak for "he was being punished". I say he's a hold for now, I wasn't overly impressed by Leshoure and no one knows if his ankle will hold up on 30 touches a game.