Willie Junior Smith (born November 13, 1986) is an American former professional football offensive tackle. He was signed by the Washington Redskins as an undrafted free agent in 2011. He played college football for East Carolina University.
 Smith at Redskins training camp in 2011 | |||||||
| No. 69, 79 | |||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Position: | Offensive tackle | ||||||
| Personal information | |||||||
| Born: | November 13, 1986 Smithfield, North Carolina, U.S. | ||||||
| Height: | 6 ft 5 in (1.96 m) | ||||||
| Weight: | 310 lb (141 kg) | ||||||
| Career information | |||||||
| High school: | Kenly (NC) North Johnston | ||||||
| College: | East Carolina | ||||||
| Undrafted: | 2011 | ||||||
| Career history | |||||||
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| * Offseason and/or practice squad member only | |||||||
| Career NFL statistics | |||||||
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He was also a member of the Oakland Raiders, San Diego Chargers and Carolina Panthers.
Professional career
edit| Height | Weight | Arm length | Hand span | 40-yard dash | 10-yard split | 20-yard split | 20-yard shuttle | Three-cone drill | Vertical jump | Broad jump | ||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 6 ft 5 in (1.96 m) |
310 lb (141 kg) |
341⁄2 | 111⁄4 | 5.50 s | 1.85 s | 3.11 s | 4.83 s | 7.95 s | 30.5 in (0.77 m) |
8 ft 10 in (2.69 m) | ||
| All values from NFL Combine[1][2] | ||||||||||||
Washington Redskins (first stint)
editOn July 28, 2011, the Washington Redskins signed Smith as an undrafted free agent.[3] Due to the suspension of Trent Williams, he played his first professional game in Week 14 of the 2011 season, rotating the left tackle position with Sean Locklear.[4] In Week 15 against the New York Giants, Smith would start his first game instead of Locklear.[5] He continued to start as the left tackle for the rest of the 2011 season. Smith has received praise for his ability to defend against elite pass rushers Jason Pierre-Paul, Jared Allen, and Trent Cole, despite being a rookie.[6]
During training camp in 2012, Smith split snaps at right tackle with Tyler Polumbus and Maurice Hurt after Jammal Brown was placed on the physically unable to perform (PUP) list.[7] He was released on August 31, 2012 for final cuts before the start of the 2012 season.[8]
Oakland Raiders
editOn September 1, 2012, Smith was claimed off waivers by the Oakland Raiders.[9] On September 27, 2013, he was released.
San Diego Chargers
editOn November 18, 2013, Smith signed a two-year deal with the San Diego Chargers.[10]
Washington Redskins (second stint)
editSmith re-signed with the Redskins on June 2, 2015.[11] He was released on August 31.[12]
Carolina Panthers
editOn August 18, 2016, Smith signed with the Carolina Panthers.[13] He was released by the Panthers on August 28, 2016.[14]
References
edit- ^ NFL Combine Profile
- ^ NFL Draft Scout
- ^ Fitzgerald, Gary (July 28, 2011). "Redskins Sign Three Undrafted Rookies". Redskins.com. Archived from the original on March 4, 2016. Retrieved July 28, 2011.
- ^ Jones, Mike (December 11, 2011). "Fill-in tackles Willie Smith, Tyler Polumbus impress Coach Mike Shanahan". WashingtonPost.com. Retrieved December 11, 2011.
- ^ "Willie Smith starts for Sean Locklear at LT for Redskins". AOLSportingNews.com. Retrieved December 18, 2011.
- ^ Fitzgerald, Gary (January 17, 2012). "Smith Stepped Up Against Elite Pass Rushers". Redskins.com. Retrieved January 17, 2012.
- ^ Whyno, Stephen (July 26, 2012). "Redskins place Jammal Brown on PUP list with hip soreness". WashingtonTimes.com. Archived from the original on July 28, 2012. Retrieved July 26, 2012.
- ^ Jones, Mike (August 31, 2012). "Redskins' cutdown day begins". WashingtonPost.com. Retrieved August 31, 2012.
- ^ Corkran, Steve (September 1, 2012). "Raiders sign offensive tackle". Inside the Oakland Raiders.
- ^ Gehlken, Michael (November 18, 2013). "Chargers sign Willie Smith ex-Raiders Tackle". UTSanDiego.com. Retrieved November 18, 2013.
- ^ Walker, Andrew (June 2, 2015). "Redskins Bring Back Tackle Willie Smith". Redskins.com. Retrieved June 2, 2015.
- ^ Keim, John (August 31, 2015). "Washington Redskins cut 13 players, including Willie Smith". ESPN.com. Retrieved August 31, 2015.
- ^ Henson, Max. "Panthers sign OT Willie Smith". Panthers.com.
- ^ "Willie Smith". foxsports.com. Retrieved July 26, 2017.
External links
edit- East Carolina Pirates bio
- Oakland Raiders bio Archived September 8, 2012, at the Wayback Machine
- San Diego Chargers bio