When the Raiders invested big money in cornerback Sean Smith before the 2016 season, they thought they were acquiring an elite pass defender. Finally, they’d have a shutdown corner they could match against the league’s top wideouts.
Yet Smith’s performance in a Raiders uniform has been uneven. He’s had some horrible games to go along with his good ones.
Earlier this season he lost his spot in the starting lineup to TJ Carrie, and it looked like the four-year, $38 million contract he signed was going to be money ill spent.
Recently, however, Smith has rebounded in a big way. In recent games Smith has worked his way back into the cornerback rotation and made solid contributions. The analytic website Pro Football Focus noted this week that over the past three games, Smith has allowed just three catches for 12 yards on four targets in 71 pass dropbacks while he’s been on the field. And, in the victory over the Miami Dolphins Sunday night, he allowed just one reception on two targets in his direction, for just 6 yards.
As Will Hernandez of Raiders Wire noted this week, Smith’s play was “lights out” against the Dolphins and quarterback Jay Cutler.
Smith’s biggest play of the night came in the fourth quarter when Cutler threw deep to wide receiver DeVante Parker, and Smith knocked the ball away at the last moment.
With injuries to David Amerson and No. 1 pick Gareon Conley, Smith has made a significant contribution to Oakland winning two of its past three games and improving its record to 4-5.
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Smith told Paul Gutierrez of ESPN.com that this year has been a “learning experience” and that he’s had to work hard to reclaim a spot on the field.
“I just take it one day at a time,” he told Gutierrez. “I come to work with a smile on my face and just work. You have to move on to the next. Whether that be the next play, the next day, the next year, I mean, you just keep moving forward.
“You can’t dwell on the past or if something’s not going well for you. You don’t even think about it. Just have that ‘next play’ mentality in everything you do. For me personally, whatever happens that day, you just move on to the next day with a smile on your face and have that same approach and be a professional and it’s going to be all right.”
The Raiders get some rest with their bye this weekend, then return to action against the 6-2 New England Patriots on Sunday, Nov. 19, in Mexico City.
