Is Steve Smith The Most Explosive Receiver In The NFL?

He's been called the Mighty Midget, the Mini-blur, and Elmer's Glue.

He has unmatched speed and a desire to succeed that is unrivaled.

He is highly temperamental, sports a short fuse, and is supremely confident in his own abilities.

Besides all these things, Steve Smith may be the most explosive receiver in the NFL.

The first time I witnessed the explosiveness of Smith was in his rookie season. Back then he was returning kicks and punts for the Carolina Panthers. The very first time he touched the ball, he took it the distance, displaying a variety of moves and amazing parallel speed. I knew then that Smith was going to be special; I just had no idea how special he would be.

In 2002, his first year as a starter, Smith recorded 54 catches for 872 yards and three touchdowns. In his second season as a feature receiver, he recorded 88 catches for 1,110 yards and seven touchdowns. And after missing most of the 2004 season, Smith had his best year with 103 catches for 1,563 yards and 12 touchdowns.

Fast forward to 2008. Coming off a two-game suspension (for punching then-teammate Ken Lucas in training camp), Smith proceeded to catch a remarkable 78 passes for 1,421 yards and six touchdowns. In a career that spans eight seasons, Smith has only had three in which he failed to reach 1,000 yards receiving. One of those was his rookie season, and in another he only played one game.

Besides the injury season of 2004, Smith has never averaged less than 12.6 yards per catch. Big numbers for a small man.

Smith's explosive temper just might rival his game. During training camp one year, Smith dislocated the eye socket of teammate Donta Bright which effectively ended his career, and in 2008 Smith broke the nose of Lucas after an altercation on the practice field. Now to be fair, Smith apologized in both cases and was fined heavily to boot, but the fire that was in his eyes in both instances has not diminished. He is known for taunting the opposing cornerbacks, and when he makes a tough catch (which he does with regularity) he heckles the defensive backs with reckless abandon.

Although I don't agree with Smith's temper or his flamboyance, I have to admit that he is one of the best receivers in the game. Other receivers get more press, and Smith is not the ideal height at 5'9”.

At the time of this writing, Smith was sidelined by a shoulder injury, to which the depth was not entirely known. X-rays were negative and Smith declared that it wouldn't derail his playing time this season.

Depending on the severity of the injury, that's bad news for the rest of the league, from the little man with the big chip who just may be the most explosive receiver in the NFL.