Lee Evans vs Steve Smith

[VJ91]

Say what you want about the quarterback or the play calling of the bills vs the panthers but tonight is proof that GREAT players find ways to make plays.

 

OK, I'll say what I want. Give the Bills a now healthier Jake Delhomme and his O-Line, and Lee Evans stats are right up there with Steve Smiths, in my humble opinion. Conversely, put Steve Smith out there with Trent "Warm-Weather" Edwards and/or J.P. Lost-man throwing behind the Bills' biggest, weakest O-line in football, and he would be lucky to have Evans' stats right now. And I say, based on watching the Bills offense the past three weeks, that is proof that HORRIBLE quarterbacks throwing behind HORRIBLE offensive lines find ways to make bad plays.

[GhostsOfTheRockpile]

All things being equal - hell, put Evans on the Panthers and Smith on the Bills - and still:

 

Steve Smith > Lee Evans

[Kipers Hair]

Agreed - Lee Evans is no comparison to Steve Smith - other than size, one is a complete player and the other is one dimensional and certainly not a game changing presence...

[TheBlackMamba]

OK, I'll say what I want. Give the Bills a now healthier Jake Delhomme and his O-Line, and Lee Evans stats are right up there with Steve Smiths, in my humble opinion. Conversely, put Steve Smith out there with Trent "Warm-Weather" Edwards and/or J.P. Lost-man throwing behind the Bills' biggest, weakest O-line in football, and he would be lucky to have Evans' stats right now. And I say, based on watching the Bills offense the past three weeks, that is proof that HORRIBLE quarterbacks throwing behind HORRIBLE offensive lines find ways to make bad plays.

 

VJ read my previous post. The numbers dont lie:

 

i am not saying that at all. what i am trying to see is that he is not the game changer that steve smith is. i dont want to hear about the qb play, the play calling or the putrid offense in general. Here is proof. Mind you that steve smith also had 4 differnet qb's; Jake Delhomms, David Carr, Vinny Testeverde and Matt more, on a 7-9 team last year and one less game

 

 

Steve Smith:

Year Age Tm Pos G GS Rec Yds Y/R TD Lng R/G Y/G Att Yds TD Lng Y/A Y/G A/G YScm RRTD Fmb

2007 28 CAR WR 15 15 87 1002 11.5 7 74 5.8 66.8 9 66 0 22 7.3 4.4 0.6 1068 7 1

 

Lee Evans:

Year Age Tm Pos G GS Rec Yds Y/R TD Lng R/G Y/G Att Yds TD Lng Y/A Y/G A/G YScm RRTD Fmb

2007 26 BUF WR 16 16 55 849 15.4 5 85 3.4 53.1 849 5 0

[K-9]

I get a kick out of these posts. I guess they're entertaining for entertainment's sake but then you read the 'serious' responses and you have to wonder. There are too many reasons to list why a valid comparison between Evans/Smith is ridiculous. But I'll have fun reading the posts that prove it one way or another.

 

GO BILLS!!!

 

Who's the better guitarist: Jimmy Hendrix, Jimmy Page, Pete Townsend, Eric Clapton, or Andre Segovia? Or Les Paul? Or Carlos Santana? For my money, it very well may be Django Reinhardt. But he couldn't run a fly pattern to save his life.

[Hazed and Amuzed]

They're not even close. I'd trade roscoe and Lee for Steve

[TheBlackMamba]

I get a kick out of these posts. I guess they're entertaining for entertainment's sake but then you read the 'serious' responses and you have to wonder. There are too many reasons to list why a valid comparison between Evans/Smith is ridiculous. But I'll have fun reading the posts that prove it one way or another.

 

GO BILLS!!!

 

Who's the better guitarist: Jimmy Hendrix, Jimmy Page, Pete Townsend, Eric Clapton, or Andre Segovia? Or Les Paul? Or Carlos Santana? For my money, it very well may be Django Reinhardt. But he couldn't run a fly pattern to save his life.

 

That's not the purpose of the post. The purpose is to show that the Bills "superstars" lack the playmaking mentallity and attitude that others teams "superstars" seem to have. Lee Evans compared to Steve Smith is an example. Donte Whitner compared to Troy Polamalu or Ed Reed is another. I mean even in the game last night...did you see Jon Beason all over the field? That's how a playmaking middle linebacker is supposed to have an affect on a game...he almost has the same affect as Paul Polusny, no? How about Julies Peppers? Schobel (when healthy) couldn't dream of wreaking havoc on a qb like that...I just don't understand why other teams are able to find the impact players and we haven't really had any for about a decade

[QB Bills]

A receiver is only as good as the qb throwing to him. Evans catches any and everything thrown his way, but he can't help it if his qb doesn't have the balls to throw to him when he's covered. If he had the bitchy attitude that some of these prima donna receivers have where he whined about not getting the ball enough, he would have much better stats. But to his credit, the guy always puts the team first. Sadly, if he was the high maintenance type, the offense would probably be better off at this point.

 

Guys like Smith, Owens, Moss, etc. get thrown to whether they are covered or not. Evans does not have that luxury, whether that's the qb's fault, or the coaches.

 

It's too hard to compare receivers because of this, but in my (probably biased) opinion, I think he is a top 5 receiver in the league on pure talent.

[Sisyphean Bills]

A receiver is only as good as the qb throwing to him. Evans catches any and everything thrown his way, but he can't help it if his qb doesn't have the balls to throw to him when he's covered.

You mean like the time James "Not-an-All-Pro" Allen casually rode him out of the play and picked off the ball in the end zone?

[Kipers Hair]

A receiver is only as good as the qb throwing to him. Evans catches any and everything thrown his way, but he can't help it if his qb doesn't have the balls to throw to him when he's covered. If he had the bitchy attitude that some of these prima donna receivers have where he whined about not getting the ball enough, he would have much better stats. But to his credit, the guy always puts the team first. Sadly, if he was the high maintenance type, the offense would probably be better off at this point.

 

Guys like Smith, Owens, Moss, etc. get thrown to whether they are covered or not. Evans does not have that luxury, whether that's the qb's fault, or the coaches.

 

It's too hard to compare receivers because of this, but in my (probably biased) opinion, I think he is a top 5 receiver in the league on pure talent.

The dude must abide here - (Lobowski will understand that one) You need to get open often enough to get that treatment - Evens simply does not. Anyone thinking he is comperable to Steve Smith knows as much about football as I do abot curling...(seems appropriate given the debacle in Toronto)...

[Alphadawg7]

on the mnf pre game show ronde barber said that steve smith and randy moss are two of the only receivers that teams have to gameplan for. Going into the 3rd quarter tonight he as 8 grabs for 108 and a td. Teams supposedly gameplan for lee evans and he hasnt had nearly the production of steve smith. They are both the same small, burner type of receiver and i dont feel that lee evans is in steve smiths' class. Say what you want about the quarterback or the play calling of the bills vs the panthers but tonight is proof that GREAT players find ways to make plays.

 

Uh, I had Steve Smith in Fantasy Football last year, so I watched him all season. He was non existent and worthless the whole year in terms of offensive production because Delhomme was hurt. Plenty of 1 catch or 2 catch games, and I even think he had a zero catch game.

 

So, even the great Steve Smith couldnt produce when Carolina stunk it up with the QB play and couldnt move the ball. Sound familiar?

[StupidNation]

Uh, I had Steve Smith in Fantasy Football last year, so I watched him all season. He was non existent and worthless the whole year in terms of offensive production because Delhomme was hurt. Plenty of 1 catch or 2 catch games, and I even think he had a zero catch game.

 

So, even the great Steve Smith couldnt produce when Carolina stunk it up with the QB play and couldnt move the ball. Sound familiar?

 

I guess you don't read well. Here are his numbers from last year with Carr, and other lousy QBs:

 

Steve Smith:

Year Age Tm Pos G GS Rec Yds Y/R TD Lng R/G Y/G Att Yds TD Lng Y/A Y/G A/G YScm RRTD Fmb

2007 28 CAR WR 15 15 87 1002 11.5 7 74 5.8 66.8 9 66 0 22 7.3 4.4 0.6 1068 7 1

 

He caught 87 passes for 1000 yards in 15, not 16, games. What does that tell you? The great ones make it easy on QBs, the ok ones need great QBs.

[Alphadawg7]

I guess you don't read well. Here are his numbers from last year with Carr, and other lousy QBs:

 

Steve Smith:

Year Age Tm Pos G GS Rec Yds Y/R TD Lng R/G Y/G Att Yds TD Lng Y/A Y/G A/G YScm RRTD Fmb

2007 28 CAR WR 15 15 87 1002 11.5 7 74 5.8 66.8 9 66 0 22 7.3 4.4 0.6 1068 7 1

 

He caught 87 passes for 1000 yards in 15, not 16, games. What does that tell you? The great ones make it easy on QBs, the ok ones need great QBs.

 

First off...he had 2 monster games with Delhomme in weeks 1 and 2. Most of his catches were short 4 yard throws and came in garbage time.

 

http://www.nfl.com/players/stevesmith/game...amp;season=2007

 

Check his game log before you open your mouth about something you dont know anything about...

 

He had 10 games UNDER 65 yards recieiving, 8 of which were under 50 yards recieving...his ypc was 11 yards compared to over 15 yards normally, he only had 1002 yards on 87 catches...he has more yards than that this year on 67 catches so far...

 

He had 27% of his TOTAL yards and 20% of his total catches for the season in the first 2 games BEFORE Delhomme was hurt!

[Thurman#1]

the point is he is currently the second highest paid receiver in the NFL behind Larry Fitz. He is being paid like a superstar but doesnt change a game the way a superstar does (i.e. steve smith)

 

 

 

Smith has a consistent QB. Have you never been at a job where you were sabotaged by having a lousy boss, stupid rules, a boneheaded system, and co-workers who couldn't count their lower cheeks? I know I have, and my performance was hurt by the situation. And Lee is dealing with more or less the same thing, as he has throughout his career.

 

Salaries go up, wildly, in football, as the cap goes up. The latest guy signed gets the best money. It's just the system. Next year, he'll be the eighth highest paid. The year after that, when hopefully he's finally ripping up the league, he'll be 15th highest. It's the way it goes.

[Thurman#1]

You mean like the time James "Not-an-All-Pro" Allen casually rode him out of the play and picked off the ball in the end zone?

 

 

JP underthrew it. He admits it. He wasn't ridden out of the play, he ran the route he was supposed to run and the ball wasn't where it was supposed to be.

[StupidNation]

First off...he had 2 monster games with Delhomme in weeks 1 and 2. Most of his catches were short 4 yard throws and came in garbage time.

 

http://www.nfl.com/players/stevesmith/game...amp;season=2007

 

Check his game log before you open your mouth about something you dont know anything about...

 

He had 10 games UNDER 65 yards recieiving, 8 of which were under 50 yards recieving...his ypc was 11 yards compared to over 15 yards normally, he only had 1002 yards on 87 catches...he has more yards than that this year on 67 catches so far...

 

He had 27% of his TOTAL yards and 20% of his total catches for the season in the first 2 games BEFORE Delhomme was hurt!

 

Actually, he did just fine without Delhomme. If Delhomme was on this team he would've been run out of town by the way. Smith averaged 7 catches per game in the last 7 games without Delhomme with no less than 5 receptions, so again, you should learn what you are talking about.

 

I watched a great segment on NFL Network on how great Smith is with lesser QBs, and while I don't piss in my Cheerios with fantasy crap, I watch a lot of games. The NFL Network showed how Smith was getting open for lesser QBs.

 

Who was the QB who he had 10 receptions with? 40 yr old Testaverde. Who did he have those averages of 7 catches in the last 7 games? Matt Freaking Moore.

 

You lose, you don't know what you are talking about, you should go study the game, you should learn how unbelievable Steve Smith is. You are pissing that Smith didn't do more for FF, instead of realizing how good he played. Did you know that Evans has never had 87 receptions in his career? Smith did it in 15 games last year with Carr, Testaverde, Moore, and Delhomme.

 

I guess your point was he didn't have monster yards per game, but he moved the chains, got open and was a safety valve for bad QBs. Tell me the last time you've seen that from a WR and you'll realize how special he is.

[My Friends Call Me Tebucky]

I think two things separate Smith from Evans:

 

1- His ability to get off the line of scrimmage. Some of it is quickness, some of it is physicality, but it's easier to play bump and run on Evans because he's easier to knock off his route.

 

2- Run after the catch. You don't see much of any of it from Evans. I would guess the bulk of his RAC yards in his career come from catching a 50 yard bomb and running 30 yards to the endzone without being touched. Smith is one of only a few receivers in the league that can take a 5 yard slant the distance.

 

Evans is a good receiver, Smith a great one. Of course, the Bills don't seem to put Evans in motion very often...something I really don't understand.

[Alphadawg7]

Actually, he did just fine without Delhomme. If Delhomme was on this team he would've been run out of town by the way. Smith averaged 7 catches per game in the last 7 games without Delhomme with no less than 5 receptions, so again, you should learn what you are talking about.

 

I watched a great segment on NFL Network on how great Smith is with lesser QBs, and while I don't piss in my Cheerios with fantasy crap, I watch a lot of games. The NFL Network showed how Smith was getting open for lesser QBs.

 

Who was the QB who he had 10 receptions with? 40 yr old Testaverde. Who did he have those averages of 7 catches in the last 7 games? Matt Freaking Moore.

 

You lose, you don't know what you are talking about, you should go study the game, you should learn how unbelievable Steve Smith is. You are pissing that Smith didn't do more for FF, instead of realizing how good he played. Did you know that Evans has never had 87 receptions in his career? Smith did it in 15 games last year with Carr, Testaverde, Moore, and Delhomme.

 

I guess your point was he didn't have monster yards per game, but he moved the chains, got open and was a safety valve for bad QBs. Tell me the last time you've seen that from a WR and you'll realize how special he is.

 

Actually I made NO reference to Fantasy Football other than to say it was why I watched every single Carolina game last year...that and the fact one of the guys I watch football with is a Carolina fan. So check the fantasy football insults at the door as it was NO PART of my argument. Next, he played 14, yes 14 games without Delhomme, but you want to focus on 7...so lets look at those fabled 7 you speak of...

 

1. Here are his avg stats during your fabled 7 game run to end the season: 6.8 catches, 67.57 ypg, 9.9 ypc and 1 TD. What a joke...thats productive for Steve Smith? Supreme to Evans? Those numbers are inflated by one game too. If you take out his one game that was truly prodcutive, his numbers for the other 6 are like this: 6.33 catches, 56 ypg, 8.85 ypc, 0 TD...pathetic!

 

2. During your 7 game run you speak so highly of, he had only 1 game over 75 yards...in fact he had only 2 games over 65 yards. He had more games under 50 yards total (3) than he did of games over 65 yards.

 

3. Yes he had a game with 10 catches...whoopie...he is a talented guy playing in the NFL...even the worst QB will get him the ball sometimes. He followed that 10 catch game up with games of 2 catches for 18 yards and 3 catches for 15yards...

 

4. If you actually watched the games last year you would also see that most of his catches were 3 yard or 4 yard passes to him right at the hike of the ball. This is further illustrated by his measly under 10ypc stats in all but 2 games.

 

5. If you take out the 2 games with Delhomme...here are his avg stats for the year (14 games): 5.14 catches 52.2 ypg, 10.15 ypc, 3 TD's...

 

6. Here are his averages the previous 2 years with Delhomme plus the first 2 games last year with Delhomme: 6.28 catches, 93.75 ypg, 14.9 ypc, and 24 TD's in 32 games.

 

7. So give it up that Smith is still elite statistically when he doesnt have a good QB...his stats suck just like Evans does when the QB is stinking up the joint.

 

So, do your homework before you put your foot in the mouth...and not only do the stats completely destroy your argument, but I watched every game and Smith was pissed in those games...they couldnt get him the ball to save their life. In a lot of the games, he got MOST of his catches near the end of the game in garbage time and they were all short little passes that had no impact on the game.

 

And, who cares about the 10 catch game...Evans had a game where he caught 2, yes two, 80 yard TD's from Losman, but you all talk about Losman as the worst QB to ever play...so even with bad QB play Evans still managed to have some big games...just like Steve Smith.

[bizell]

one thing about steve smith.. HIS TEAM ACTUALLY THROWS HIM SMOKE ROUTES WHEN THE CB IS 5+ YARDS OFF OF HIM.

 

why don't we ever do that with lee?

[MDH]

Did you know that Evans has never had 87 receptions in his career?

 

You're trying to use stats to compare two different things. As much as you "don't want to hear" about different offenses and different QBs - those are HUGE factors. If the offensive coaching staff wanted to feature Lee Evans the way the Panthers feature Smith in the passing game he could wrack up 7 catches a game - easily. Getting the ball to the wideout isn't difficult to do if you try to. But as we've seen the Bills don't even target Evans during entire games - much less make an effort to feature him. Is this Lee's fault? He doesn't play with a QB who will try to fire the ball into tight coverage and let his WR make a play. If Lee isn't wide open the play gets checked down and Lynch wracks up 7 catches that game. So pointing to catches per game but ignoring yardage from last year doesn't really make your point. If he was just as good with bad QBs he wouldn't put up such pedestrian yardage numbers in most of his games last year.

 

I'm not claiming Evans is a better WR than Smith as he's not, but the gap isn't as large as you want to believe. Given the right situation Evans could be a dominant WR. He's fast, he runs good routes and he has very good hands. He doesn't always use his body as well as he could (this is an area Smith clearly outclasses Evans) but he very capable of being a top 10 WR given the right situation.

 

As you've pointed out in a previous post - why can't the Bills find any playmakers? It's because the coaches don't put their players in a place to succeed. The Bills have players capable of making big plays (as anybody who returns kicks has shown) but the coaching staff (minus Bobby April) simply doesn't put them in positions to make those game changing plays. They play it safe to the vest and simply hope not to lose the game.