Bucs release LT Donovan Smith, Patriots should pounce

On Tuesday, the Tampa Bay Buccaneers released long-time left tackle Donovan Smith. The New England Patriots should be all over this potential signing.

This could be a solid and smart free agency move for the Patriots who do need some help at left tackle.  Smith, who was drafted in the second round of the 2015 NFL Draft, has spent his entire career thus far with the Tampa Bay Buccaneers.

After playing in and starting over 100 games for the team, Smith will hit the market.  He’ll likely be taking a very small amount of money to latch onto a OL needy team, and the Patriots are the perfect fit.

With Isaiah Wynn being a free agent and Trent Brown not cutting it at right tackle, Smith could realistically come in and start for a year or so while the Pats sort through a long-term option at the position.

The baffling decision to switch Wynn and Brown at the tackle spots proved to be a failure.  It was a bold move by Matt Patricia at the time, but became very clear that the move didn’t work.

It’s a shame because the interior of Cole Strange, David Andrews, and Mike Onwenu has a chance to be the best in the NFL, but the subpar tackle play has brought the entire unit down.

To be fair, though, Donovan Smith was not good in 2022 and has had some spurts of being up and down.  He’s not exactly someone that an opposing edge rusher would fear, but given the current left tackle market and what the Patriots are dealing with there, I’m not sure they’d have a clear path to get someone better.

Maybe they could turn to the NFL Draft to draft a rookie left tackle, but even in that scenario, there’s no guarantee that the draft pick pans out or is ready to start day one.

Bringing in someone like Donovan Smith could give them a high-floor player in the meantime.