Lamar Smith: In Review and Celebration

Naturally, Smith's numbers struggled for the next couple years due, likely, in most part to this calamity, and also the facts that Seattle was a mediocre team, Smith was still quite young, and Chris Warren was the Seahawk starter at running back.

After the 1997 season, Seattle decided, prematurely as time would prove, that they had seen enough of Smith. Out were both he and longtime starter Chris Warren. In were Ricky Watters and Ahman Green.

But 1998 would roll in and so begin the pinnacle of Smith’s career, as he landed in New Orleans under Mike Ditka. Lord only knows what was on Smith’s mind after the trauma in his personal life and the release from Seattle. But he managed to start nine games that year, and saw his yards per carry tally rise to 3.3, his personal best.

Smith rushed for 100 yards in a game for the first time on Sept. 27, when he led the, then, unbeaten Saints to an overtime win at Indianapolis with a stellar 157-yard performance.

He would have been the full time starter in '99, had the Saints not drafted Ricky Williams out of Texas in the offseason.

Despite, Smith raised his yards per carry mark while appearing admirably in 13 games as a backup. He rushed for 66 yards in the team’s opening game against the George Seifert-coached Carolina Panthers.

However, New Orleans would go on to see little need for an aging (now nearly 30) backup rusher, and became the second team to release Lamar Smith after their three-win season in 1999.

In a most beneficial spin, Dave Wannstedt replaced Jimmy Johnson as Miami's head coach, and instituted a four-man try-out at running back in the hope of ceasing the ground woes that ran the former Cowboy out of popular approval.

Smith was among this quartet, along with incumbent starter J.J. Johnson and Buffalo great, Thurman Thomas.

Smith won the job easily, and started the season by rushing for 145 yards and a score against, whom else, but New Orleans.  Sweet.

2000 would prove to be Smith's career year as he ran for nearly 1,150 yards, tied for eighth in the league with rushing attempts (309 in 15 games), and posted career marks in receiving (31 catches that year), to boot.

Of course, the highlight was his remarkable 40-carry show against the Colts in Wild Card week at Pro Player.  Smith averaged well over five yards-per-carry.

The game had a rough start for the Fish, who trailed by 14 points after a mid-second quarter touchdown strike from Peyton Manning to Jerome Pathon.

To this point, Miami quarterback Jay Fiedler had already thrown three interceptions.  It was clear.  Time for Lamar.

The second half started with Miami feeding Smith eight times en route to a quick score.  He had a 24-yard burst to get into Colt territory, and the drive’s capstone from the 2-yard line.

Miami’s defense stepped up the entire second half, only allowing a 50-yard field goal by Mike Vanderjagt.

Jay Fiedler was finally able to get things going at the two-minute warning, orchestrating what was a game-tying drive, which saw Smith touch the ball three times.

Then, in overtime, following a Vanderjagt miss, Miami’s offense came out for what would be the game’s final drive.

Smith received six touches out of the ten-play spree (and one additional 13-yard rush which was called back on a holding penalty), the last ending the Colts season on a 17-yard run designed to go between the right guard and tackle, before Smith improvised to read the blitz, thus bolting for the sideline and the end zone.

The game literally ceased on its hero's hoisting of Colts free safety Jason Belser over the goal line, where Smith let him fall off to the field like, say, a giant chip shed from his shoulder.

The home fans went wild; knowing their AFC East champions just proved themselves one of the league’s most resilient contenders.

They were later losers in the Divisional Round when forced to travel west to play the eventual conference runner-up Oakland Raiders. 

However, Smith played a very limited role in the game, only carrying eight times as his fatigue from the Colt win hung over all week.

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