VERSUS: STEVE SMITH VS STEVE SMITH

As many fantasy players know there are two Steve Smith’s in the NFL.  One plays for the New York Giants and the other plays for the Carolina Panthers.  Both are quick on their feet and display great hands.  However, over the past couple of seasons whenever a fantasy team owner would announce Steve Smith as their next selection it was generally assumed that the owner meant Steve Smith of the Carolina Panthers.  Later in the draft when someone was ready to draft Steve Smith of the Giants that owner might have said something along the lines of “I will take the other Steve Smith”.  This does not seem to be the case for this upcoming season as it is now going to be harder to distinguish which player is actually the “other” Steve Smith.  I expect both players to be selected prior to the end of the fourth round in any upcoming fantasy drafts.  However, which Steve Smith will be selected ahead of the other is now up for debate.  Steve Smith of the Giants is a much younger player and is coming off of a one hundred plus reception season.  On the other hand, Steve Smith of the Panthers is a seasoned veteran with a strong commitment to being highly productive.  To better understand the comparison between the two players I have provided a tale of the tape below.

As you can see from the stats above both players have the potential to have a significant fantasy impact in the coming season.  A closer look reveals that Smith of the Giants has not missed a game the past two seasons while Smith of the Panthers missed two games in 2008 due to suspension and then the final game of 2009 due to a broken arm.  This is the same arm he broke while playing flag football this past offseason, so bear in mind the possible injury risk when making a decision.  Judging from the overall numbers it is safe to say that both players will deliver around the same number of touchdowns this coming season along with a relatively close total yardage accumulation.  However, I do believe that Steve Smith of the Giants has the potential to deliver more total yardage along with the highest likelihood of delivering a 100 plus reception season.  Another factor to consider is the state of the quarterback situation for each franchise.  The Giants have an established veteran at quarterback in Eli Manning, while the Panthers have an unpolished Matt Moore set to start the season.  If Moore were to faultier then the team would most likely turn to rookie Jimmy Clausen to take over the starting role.  With a bit of a question mark at quarterback for the Panthers and looking at the players performances from last season I think Steve Smith of the Giants should be the player selected higher in most drafts.  My prediction is for Giants Steve Smith to go somewhere in the third round and Panthers Steve Smith to go somewhere in the fourth round.  Just remember, you may need to specify which Steve Smith you want when you make this selection as you wouldn’t want any confusion as to who “the other” Steve Smith is.