Hall of Fame member Jackie Smith was one of the dominant tight ends of the 1960s and '70s, playing with the Cardinals from 1963 through 1977. He was 6' 4" and 235 pounds, fast, powerful and elusive. He finished his career with 480 receptions for 7,918 yards and 40 touchdowns. His per catch average was an outstanding 16.5 yards, which today would place him among the best wide receivers in that category. His peak season was 1967, when he caught 56 passes for 1,205 yards, a remarkable 21.5 yards per reception.
Smith made a big mistake by playing for the Cowboys in 1978, the final year of his career. He only played in two regular games that season and had one target and no catches. However in the Super Bowl following the 1978 regular season between Dallas and Pittsburgh, he dropped an easy touchdown pass from Roger Staubach which sadly greatly marred his otherwise sterling legacy. The Steelers ended up winning 35-31 in one of the great Super Bowls and Smith is often blamed for the Cowboys losing. In today's short attention span society when history is often defined by snippets of information (and disinformation), Smith's great career is forgotten but his drop lives on in infamy, similar to the way Bill Buckner letting a ball go through his legs in Game 6 of the 1986 World Series pretty much destroyed what had been an excellent career that included a batting title and 2,715 career hits.
Smith was mentioned in several recent posts in the Travis Kelce thread, so I'm starting this thread and posting his career highlights. There's no question he would be a dominant player today, among the very best and there have been some terrific White tight ends in the NFL over the past decade or so.
Smith made a big mistake by playing for the Cowboys in 1978, the final year of his career. He only played in two regular games that season and had one target and no catches. However in the Super Bowl following the 1978 regular season between Dallas and Pittsburgh, he dropped an easy touchdown pass from Roger Staubach which sadly greatly marred his otherwise sterling legacy. The Steelers ended up winning 35-31 in one of the great Super Bowls and Smith is often blamed for the Cowboys losing. In today's short attention span society when history is often defined by snippets of information (and disinformation), Smith's great career is forgotten but his drop lives on in infamy, similar to the way Bill Buckner letting a ball go through his legs in Game 6 of the 1986 World Series pretty much destroyed what had been an excellent career that included a batting title and 2,715 career hits.
Smith was mentioned in several recent posts in the Travis Kelce thread, so I'm starting this thread and posting his career highlights. There's no question he would be a dominant player today, among the very best and there have been some terrific White tight ends in the NFL over the past decade or so.
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