A Big Laugh...

As the week came to an end, I decided the joke of the week belongs to…Mr. Andre Smith.

The Cincinnati Bengals first round pick Andre Smith suffered a small fracture in his foot in a non-contract drill just two days after ending a 30-day hold out. Andre Smith has been part of a bad chain of events that started at the end of his college season, including being accused of dealing with an agent before he was eligible which resulted in his suspension from the Alabama bowl game.

Next came the much anticipated NFL combine. Smith continued to disappoint after leaving the combine without telling anyone, only to explain later that he left because he felt unprepared. After drawing negative attention to himself, he returned for the 40-yard dash. If you haven’t seen Andre Smith run the 40, please please please click this link...(Andre Smith 40 yard dash...skip to the 42 second mark in the video) If you have seen the video already, you should understand Smith did nothing but embarrass himself as he wobbled 40 yards shirtless.

At one point, Smith was regarded as the top offensive tackle in the draft. However, after the agent and combine issues, team executives decided that his talent did not outweigh the possibility of future off-field issues, and the top five teams in the draft passed on him.

While being picked 6th is still a big deal, the first offensive tackle taken, Jason Smith, was selected second. Jason Smith’s contract is for five years $62 million, with $33 million guaranteed. Andre Smith’s contract is for four years $26 million with $21 million guaranteed. His contract also has a team option in 2010, that if exercised, Andre can earn $42 million with nearly $30 million guaranteed. Andre’s contract also states he will lose half of his game check each time he weighs in over 350 lbs.

In short, I guess it is good that Andre Smith and his agent finally got a deal done, so he can catch up on the things he has missed…but he has a lot of work ahead of him before he is ready to see game time. After watching HBO’s Hardknocks, it appears that Smith will have to earn the respect of his teammates and coaches. He has a little more to prove than the average rookie.