How TE Lee Smith’s Return Benefits the Raiders
Oakland Raiders TE Lee Smith isn’t going to light up the stat sheet. Yards and touchdowns aren’t what he’s there for. In total, Smith has caught 38 career passes for 243 yards and four touchdowns. Smith’s role is to help keep quarterback Derek Carr upright and open lanes for the running backs. As a pure-blocking tight end, the 6-foot-6, 265-pound Marshall product is a de facto offensive tackle rather than receiver. He’s one of the best blocking tight ends in the league, adept at both pass protection and run blocking.
When the 29-year-old suffered a fractured ankle in October, the Raiders lost a vital cog to the offense. Players and coaches alike scrambled to replace the dominant blocker within the roster. Clive Walford, a versatile tight end, doesn’t have the blocking chops. Neither did Mychal Rivera.
“It’ll take several people, in all likelihood, to fill his shoes because of all that he did, mainly the dirty work,” lamented head coach Jack Del Rio. “Mainly the blocking, the dirty work. Kind of an unsung hero kind of role where he’s just very tough, very determined.”
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In his absence, the Raiders deployed the additional tackle into the lineup. They activated rookie RT Vadal Alexander and Denver Kirkland in a role usually reserved for Smith. With a clean bill of health and renewed vigor, a game-day roster spot for an additional lineman goes to another position of need. Oakland sees the return of a plus blocker, armed with a hellacious mean streak. Not to mention, Smith enters the final year of a three-year deal. He’s got plenty of motivation to overcome a lost year.
“Everybody in that locker room loves Lee and knows that if you’re going to go down in a back alley, he’s one of the top three people you’re taking,” Carr said when the tight end was lost for the year. “You know he will fight for every single person on this team.”
In essence, when Lee Smith steps on the field this year, Oakland regains its most underrated asset. While Smith prefers to toil in anonymity, hardcore fans appreciate what he does. Those battles with defensive linemen are what nightmares consist of for most tight ends. Smith approaches the game with a passion that RaiderNation feels.
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