Brad Smith Named AFC's Special Teams Player of the Week
by Matt Birch on Dec 30, 2009 3:15 PM EST
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PrintBrad Smith came through with a game-changing play in Sunday's game via opening the second half with a 106-yard Kickoff Return for a TD to give the Jets their first lead in the game. It was the longest TD of any kind in franchise history, and also the second longest KO return in NFL history.
Today he was compensated, as he was named the AFC's ST Player of the Week.
Smith has been fairly under-the-radar this season, as he brings so much versatility to the Jets offense. He is now the primary player to take snaps in the Jets Wildcat formation (nicknamed the "Tiger" formation), and has also been returning kicks since Leon Washington's injury. The Jets had previously tried out a couple of guys returning kicks, including Darelle Revis, and it's great to see we now have someone who can be consistent back there.
Initially drafted as a QB/WR out of college, he also lines up as WR when the Jets choose to spread the field and go with 3 and 4 WR-Sets.
Congratulations, Brad! You've earned it. The versatility he brings to this team is certainly commendable.
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How valuable is this guy? It’s great that he finally has some recognition.
and the home of the... JETS!!!
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More valuable than people give him credit for, he’s a nice change of pace in the offence, hoping to see him a little in the wild cat on Sunday.
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THANK YOU!
I always forget what the formation is called and was trying to remember it.
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LOL. Really? Well, it was called the Seminole when Leon was in it. Don’t really know how official the Tiger is.
By the way, people don’t realize the Jets were way ahead of Miami in using this gadget play. We’ve had it in our system since Brad Smith was drafted in ‘06. I got a feeling Chad Pennington was instrumental in having the Dolphins use it more, seeing as he saw it’s effect under the Jets.
and the home of the... JETS!!!
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Tiger formation was the unofficial name since he came from Mizzou, but it’s actually stuck from being passed around the net so much now that Leon isn’t taking the snaps.
Funny you mentioned that though, I was actually reading an article John wrote on here (back in August 18), that said we had used it back in 06-07.
The Pennington thought never even crossed my mind. Good call.
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I just think the Pennington connection is too much of a coincidence to ignore. Plus, I think Chad actually liked to block and hit people for a change.
and the home of the... JETS!!!
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I think the first team in the NFL to use it was the Panthers under Dan Henning who developed it at Miami. It’s been around in football for decades though, just a late comer to the NFL.
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New York Jets
Gang Green Nation
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Henning didn't use it when he coached Atlanta
Maybe his son, Dan Henning Jr., who was a QB at Maryland, convinced him to try it.
I think the NFL collectively used to think it was somehow unprofessional for a player to perform the role of another position (or that QB was such a high-skill position that another player couldn’t perform it successfully even for a single play), but actually it’s just a small stretch from having a WR run on a reverse (Jerry Rice did this many times) or putting in a defensive tackle or end in a running play as an extra blocker (not to mention as a fullback – remember Refrigerator Perry?) which actually didn’t work most of the time, or from a fake punt or FG. College teams were more willing to experiment, since a lot of their players had been converted from other positions in the beginning anyway.
As for the terminology, Tiger may be more official, but the wildcat is what more people call it in practice.
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