Bengals TE Irv Smith Jr. proving to be a student of the game
While the Cincinnati Bengals weren't as active in free agency like they were in years past (that's still weird to type out after all these years), their offense was fortified with two key signings in March. Left tackle Orlando Brown Jr. gets most of the publicity, but Irv Smith Jr. becoming the team's third starting […]
While the Cincinnati Bengals weren't as active in free agency like they were in years past (that's still weird to type out after all these years), their offense was fortified with two key signings in March.
Left tackle Orlando Brown Jr. gets most of the publicity, but Irv Smith Jr. becoming the team's third starting tight end in the last three years is looking more and more like a savvy decision from the front office.
Not only does Smith already look the part on the field, he's going above and beyond to absorb the playbook and get acclimated into the offense as quick as possible. This includes spending ample time with tight ends coach James Casey.
When Smith hasn't been catching passes from Joe Burrow and showing his natural catching ability, as offensive coordinator Brian Callahan pointed out on the Locked On Bengals Podcast, he's been in the lab with Casey.
It's leaving quite the impression on the fifth-year assistant and key architect of the Bengals' offense.
"I can't say enough positive things about his demeanor. How he goes about his work," Callahan said about Smith. "He's always in James [Casey]'s office, all hours of the day. He studies really hard. He's got some familiarity in the system from Minnesota. There's some things that carryover that made it learning easier, but man, I'm excited about what his potential to bring to our offense is."
Continuity hasn't been this strong for the Bengals since Callahan was hired back in 2019. Now that the roster has been successfully redone, integrating new pieces like Smith becomes less common than the past three years showed it to be.
Smith's dedication to fitting in the Bengals' offense as quick as possible will help him incur plenty of opportunities to prove his worth early and often this season. He'll help the offense progress, instead of forcing the other 10 starters to let him catch up.
Callahan's mentioning of similarities between Cincinnati and Minnesota's offenses is also interesting. The Vikings' passing game featured far more under center and play action calls compared to the Bengals in 2022. Perhaps the Bengals are shifting towards more of those concepts this season.
The addition of Smith can help escalate that evolution, which only makes the Bengals' offense better.
Prominent NFL analyst ‘fascinated’ by Bengals free agent signing
The fit looks great on paper.
Featured image via © Sam Greene/The Enquirer / USA TODAY NETWORK
