Video: Tre’Quan Smith says he’s two weeks away from returning to play

Video: Tre’Quan Smith says he’s two weeks away from returning to play

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In a video captured by Jameis Winston’s longtime photographer and shared by NewOrleans.Football’s Nick Underhill, New Orleans Saints wide receiver Tre’Quan Smith shared some good news from the sidelines of Sunday’s loss to the New York Giants.

“Two more weeks, that’s all I need. Two more, I’m ready,” Smith grinned at the Caesars Superdome while his teammates took the field.

Smith missed most of training camp with a lingering hamstring injury, attempting to work through it at one point before acknowledging his body wouldn’t cooperate. He started the season on injured reserve and missed the first four games recovering. While he was eligible to return last week, the Saints opted to keep Smith on the reserve list. Now he’s saying he’s still two weeks away.

That coincides with New Orleans’ Week 6 bye and the potential return of Michael Thomas in Week 7. Thomas was sidelined for the first six weeks of the season on the physically unable to perform list after offseason ankle surgery. Both players still need to prove they’ve recovered before they can play, but it sure seems possible the Saints could visit the Seattle Seahawks for “Monday Night Football” in a few weeks with their two best wide receivers back in the fold.

Returning those two would do a lot to help Jameis Winston and the inconsistent-at-best Saints passing attack. New Orleans’ wide receivers have combined for just 436 receiving yards through four games, nearly as many as Cooper Kupp has gained by himself (431) and fewer than both Tyreek Hill (453) and Deebo Samuel (490). That’s fewer yards than Michael Thomas picked up alone in 2018 (445), too.

But let’s circle back to Smith. His first 40 games weren’t great, averaging just 2.0 receptions for 27.7 receiving yards per game. But he wasn’t a good fit for a late-career Drew Brees as someone who excelled on routes further downfield in college, instead being cast as a mid-range possession receiver. He struggled with the precise routes and alignments required in that role, and the punishing hits he’s absorbed have taken a toll.

If Smith is healthy now and still has his legs under him, Winston should be able to get more out of Smith than we’ve seen before in the NFL. At this point, the team is starting to run out of options.

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