All the signs were there for Cincinnati Bengals tight end Irv Smith Jr. to see his already-limited role reduced even further.
He’d had a couple of drops in key spots. There was the crushing fumble at the 5-yard line at San Francisco. Two days later, the team elevated Tanner Hudson from the practice squad with the intent of giving him not just snaps but targets.
But Sunday night in a playoff rematch against the Buffalo Bills, Smith lined up as the starting tight end and, a few plays later, caught back-to-back passes from Joe Burrow, including a seven-yard touchdown pass, his first as a Bengal.
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Smith finished with three catches for 26 yards and the touchdown. The 26 yards was a season high, and the three catches tied his most since joining the Bengals.
Asked if he had a talk with Smith after the fumble and Hudson’s elevation to let him know he is still in their plans, head coach Zac Taylor said that wasn’t necessary.
“Just because one guy has one fumble, it doesn’t change your whole … it’s now how we react to things,” Taylor said.
“We look at the body of work, and Irv has done some great things throughout the season that probably don’t get written about because they’re not all splash plays necessarily, but we’ve got a lot of confidence in Irv and the other guys in the room.”
Joe Burrow connects with Irv Smith for the early tuddy and a 7-0 #Bengals lead❕ pic.twitter.com/M7McQznHoH
— Pro Football Network (@PFN365)
Smith said he hated the fact that he fumbled, but fortunately, it didn’t cost the Bengals as they went on to win 31-17.
“It’s something you don’t ever wanna do,” Smith said of the fumble. “But at the end of the day, I feel like I bounced back. My team is confident in me. All my teammates were, and the coaches. They know I can make plays out there.”
Taylor made it clear that elevating Hudson was not related to what Smith did two days prior or at any point this season leading up to the promotion.
Hudson looked great in training camp and made his presence felt in the two games he appeared as a game-day elevation while Smith was dealing with a hamstring injury. In the weeks since, he’d looked even better in practice.
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“Tanner was probably the 54th guy as we made that decision at final cuts, and he did a lot of things that were positive to put him in that position,” Taylor said.
“So that was something that always weighed in the back of our mind of guys that are deserving of opportunities. And that doesn’t speak to another person. That just speaks to guys that we have on our roster who continue to earn it through the way that they practice, and I thought Tanner the week before we promoted him had an outstanding week of practice.
“I remember him making plays in the red zone against our defense,” Taylor continued. “And you’re just kind of watching it with Duke (Tobin, director of player personnel) and just saying this guy deserves an opportunity. And it doesn’t speak poorly to the other guys in the room.”
In addition to Smith, Drew Sample also caught a touchdown against the Bills, while Hudson led all Bengals tight ends with four catches and 45 yards. The four catches were a career high, and the 45 yards marked his second-highest total.
Sample left the tight end room in snaps with 26, followed closely by Smith with 25, Hudson with 16, and Mitch Wilcox with 10.
“Everybody brings their juice, and everybody is their player,” Smith said. “Tanner brought a lot to help us as a tight end group and as a team. We’re just gonna keep building on it.”
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