Tag: irv smith jr.

Texans elevate former starting tight end from practice squad vs. Jagaurs

Irv Smith Jr. is being called up from the Houston Texans practice squad for Week 13.

Irv Smith Jr. is being called up.

The former Minnesota Vikings’ starting tight end will be elevated from the Houston Texans practice squad for Sunday’s showdown against the Jacksonville Jaguars.

Receiver Jared Wayne also will be activated for Sunday’s game.

 

With Wayne’s arrival, it’s a good sign that second-year pass-catcher Xavier Hutchinson will not play on the road in Week 13. He’s been limited in practice this week after dealing with a shoulder injury suffered against the Tennesee Titans.

Wayne’s been on the practice squad for two years and was called up once in 2023. Smith, a former second-round pick out of Alabama, has yet to join the Texans’ active roster since joining the team in September.

For his career, Smith has 109 career receptions in the NFL for 973 yards and 10 touchdowns.

Last season with the Cincinnati Bengals, he caught 18 passes for 115 yards and one touchdown last season in 12 games.

Kickoff from EverBank Stadium is scheduled for noon CT.

Houston Texans sign former Alabama TE Irv Smith Jr. to practice squad

On Tuesday, the Houston Texans signed former Alabama tight end Irv Smith Jr. He last played for the Kansas City Chiefs.

After a workout on Tuesday, the Houston Texans decided to sign former Alabama tight end Irv Smith Jr. The Louisiana native suited up for the Cincinnati Bengals last season.

Smith Jr. has been in the NFL since 2019. He was drafted in the second round by the Minnesota Vikings. Smith Jr. spent four seasons with the Vikings. In 37 games, he reeled in 91 receptions for 858 yards and nine touchdowns. Following his fourth season in the Windy City, Smith Jr. signed with the Cincinnati Bengals in free agency.

In one season with the Bengals, Smith Jr. played in 12 games. He hauled in 18 receptions for 115 yards and one touchdown. A couple months after the season ended, Smith Jr. signed with the Kansas City Chiefs. He spent over five months with the Chiefs before he was released.

After a month of being a free agent, Smith Jr. will join the Texans’ practice squad. He will have an opportunity to earn a spot on the active roster over time, but this is the first step for the former second-round draft pick.

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Roll Tide Wire will continue to follow the latest regarding former Alabama players in the NFL.

Patriots reportedly worked out former second-round pick tight end

The Patriots reportedly hosted two tight ends for a workout

The New England Patriots worked out tight ends Zaire Mitchell-Paden and Irv Smith on Monday, according to KPRC 2’s Aaron Wilson.

Mitchell-Paden most recently spent time with the Cleveland Browns. He was given a reserve/future contract with the organization in January. He was waived by the team on August 27.

Smith, who was cut by the Kansas City Chiefs in August, played with the Cincinnati Bengals in 2023. He caught 18 passes for 115 yards and a touchdown. He began his career with the Minnesota Vikings in 2019. Overall, he has 109 receptions for 973 yards and 10 touchdowns in his four-year career.

New England could use additional tight end depth behind Hunter Henry and Austin Hooper. Henry caught two passes for 18 yards in Sunday’s 16-10 win over the Bengals, while Hooper grabbed two passes for 31 yards.

The Patriots spent a seventh-round draft pick on rookie tight end Jaheim Bell. There’s hope that he can work his way up to being a prominent contributor at some point.

But there’s also nothing wrong with updating their emergency list at a position of importance in offensive coordinator Alex Van Pelt’s run-heavy offense.

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Former Alabama TE Irv Smith Jr. released by the Kansas City Chiefs

Chiefs release former Alabama second-round draft pick.

After less than six months with the organization, the Kansas City Chiefs have released former Alabama Crimson Tide tight end Irv Smith Jr.

Smith was a breakout star for the Crimson Tide in the 2018 campaign where he caught 44 passes for 710 yards and seven touchdowns. He was named a Second-team All-SEC member and was eventually selected in the second round, No. 50th overall, of the 2019 NFL draft by the Minnesota Vikings.

Alongside two-time Pro Bowler T.J. Hockenson, Smith struggled to find consistent playing time in his four years with Minnesota and ended up with the Cincinnati Bengals for the 2023 season.

Smith will certainly land on a practice squad, but there is no telling whether or not he will make an active roster this year.

Contact/Follow us @RollTideWire on Twitter, and like our page on Facebook to follow ongoing coverage of Alabama news, notes and opinion. You can also follow Sam Murphy on Twitter @SamMurphy02.

Ranking 2024’s top 12 free-agent tight ends

Top tight ends hitting free agency this offseason:

Even after last year’s signing of Hayden Hurst, could the Carolina Panthers be in the market for a new tight end?

If so, here are some of the best that free agency has to offer:

Watch: Joe Burrow opens SNF with TD strike to Irv Smith Jr.

The Bengals strike first.

The Cincinnati Bengals gave onlookers some serious deja vu on the very first drive of “Sunday Night Football” against the Buffalo Bills.

There, Joe Burrow marched his offense down the field, peppering six targets (none named Ja’Marr Chase, somehow) with receptions before finding Irv Smith Jr. for an easy touchdown.

Not only is that how the regular season and playoff games against the Bills started last year, it was a nice comeback story for Smith, who fumbled in the red zone last week and saw the team call another tight end up to the active roster.

Here’s a look at the highlight:

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Irv Smith Jr. already looking like he could be best TE of Joe Burrow era

Irv Smith Jr. brings more to the Bengals offense and his coaches know it.

When the Cincinnati Bengals signed tight end Irv Smith Jr. in free agency, there was a glimmer of hope that he could further evolve the passing game because of his versatility.

Compared to past starters C.J. Uzomah and Hayden Hurst, Smith’s work as a pro so far suggested a more robust route tree and potentially after-catch playmaking.

So far, Smith has had nothing but praise for this Bengals coaching staff actually conferring with him about ways to get him open with routes that play to his strengths.

“Never on this level,” Smith said, according to Geoff Hobson of Bengals.com. “This is the best coaching staff I’ve been around. I put a lot of time and effort into getting better in the offseason and they’ve seen that and it’s a blessing.”

And offensive coordinator Brian Callahan spoke on this topic too, going as far as saying Smith indeed brings a different skill set than his predecessors.

“We try to call things guys like. That tends to make it work. That tends to make a good play,” Callahan said. “Irv is good in space. He’s different than the tight ends we’ve had before. He has real ability to separate and win after the catch.”

So far, with a smart nudge from the coaching staff, Smith seems to be matching the hype that suggested big things. Should it continue, the passing attack could be even more dynamic in 2023.

For what it’s worth, one of Smith’s big highlights so far certainly suggests he’ll have a big impact on the offense.

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This Irv Smith Jr. training camp highlight should have Bengals fans hyped

Bengals fans will like this Irv Smith Jr. highlight.

The Cincinnati Bengals have made a habit over the last few years of taking perceived projects at the tight end spot and having them put up great production in Joe Burrow’s offense.

C.J. Uzomah got a nice bump before heading to free agency and Hayden Hurst did the same after last year.

Irv Smith Jr. might just be next.

Smith, freed of run-based offenses, could be the latest to experience a breakout after signing with the team and taking over the role as No. 1 on the depth chart.

Especially if he keeps making wicked highlight grabs like this during a recent training camp practice, as captured by Fox 19’s Jeremy Rauch:

There’s unwarranted offseason hype, then there’s a big grab like this that should have Bengals fans thinking about how he might be able to do the same and more with Burrow under center.

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Bengals 2023 player profile for TE Irv Smith Jr.

A 2023 profile for Bengals TE Irv Smith Jr.

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The Cincinnati Bengals added a new starter at tight end by signing Irv Smith Jr. in free agency.

Smith immediately slots into the starting role in Joe Burrow’s offense and could bring a fresh element to the position, so here’s a look at a profile.

 

Experience: 5 years (Round 2, 2019)

Age: 25

College:  Alabama

2022 PFF Grade: 56.6

Numbers to Know: 91 catches, 858 yards and nine touchdowns over 37 games.

Resume and Outlook: Smith had previously been stuck in some run-first offenses and at times had problems staying on the field. But he’s Cincinnati’s latest rehab attempt at the position after Hayden Hurst. And he brings along with him what should be a more robust route tree, which means a bigger variety of looks for the position in the offense. It’s not unreasonable to expect he will similarly break out, if not even be the best player the team has had at the spot to date during the Burrow era.

 

Other 2023 Bengals player profiles: 

Position Name
OL Jaxson Kirkland
DE Tarell Basham
RB Chris Evans
DE Jeff Gunter
P Brad Robbins
LB Jaylen Moody
TE Drew Sample
QB Trevor Siemian
DE Cam Sample
CB DJ Ivey
WR Stanley Morgan
OL Jackson Carman
P Drue Chrisman
WR Trent Taylor
S Tycen Anderson
DT Josh Tupou
RB Chase Brown
WR Charlie Jones
OT Cody Ford

 

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Irv Smith Jr. impressing Bengals with quick adaption to offense

Irv Smith Jr. is coming along quickly in the Bengals offense.

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The Cincinnati Bengals don’t have many new starters who joined the team this offseason, but tight end Irv Smith Jr. is one notable big exception.

Smith is the team’s latest short-term investment at the tight end position — at least for now, unless some of this mid-June hype leads to him sticking around for much longer.

Said hype centers on how impressed teammates and coaches are with how Smith moves on the field and how quickly he has picked up the offense.

“He’s a really smart, savvy player. We don’t have a lot of new guys on offense, but he’s picked it up seamlessly as far as a lot of adjustments go. He’s done a great job picking that stuff up,” tight end Drew Sample said, according to Geoff Hobson of Bengals.com. “C.J. (Uzomah) and Hayden (Hurst) are great. For Irv, I think he may be the smoothest of those guys. Getting in and out of his breaks. He’s a very smooth route runner. He can get down the seam. Makes a lot of cuts like receivers. All great players, Irv just brings his different spin to it.”

And here’s head coach Zac Taylor: “And so I think just how quickly he has understood not just the scheme but the nuances in the scheme of playing tight end in this system and I’ve been really impressed with that.”

We’re in best shape of his life! territory in June, but it’s not hard to buy much of what was said here. Smith is a former second-round pick who has had problems staying healthy and/or not been featured heavily in a passing attack. But the talent has always been there and it sure doesn’t hurt that he’s linking back up with former LSU teammate Joe Burrow.

A quick adaptation now suggests Smith is at least positioned to be the latest success story at tight end for the Bengals. That means he’s got the chance to be the best of the last few years, too, given his natural skill set.

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