Report: Steve Smith wants out

By Pat Yasinskas
ESPN.com
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Sometime before the NFL lockout started in March, Carolina Panthers wide receiver Steve Smith cleaned out his locker at Bank of America Stadium, according to a report by Pro Football Weekly.

The report also says Smith, on the same day, took down all of the decorations in the luxury suite his family used on game days.

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There has been speculation for months that the veteran wide receiver might want out as the Panthers continue with a youth movement and coach Ron Rivera takes over a team that was 2-14 last season.

Smith has been mum on the topic, but this could be a sign that he wants to be traded as soon as the league's labor situation is resolved enough to allow transactions.

The report also said Smith asked to be traded before the lockout began. Smith's Charlotte home has been on the market for more than a year, but he said last season that was because he was considering moving to another home in the area that would better accommodate his family.

The team has been deliberate when discussing Smith's future publicly. At the NFL owners meeting, Rivera said he had talked to Smith before the lockout and that the team would wait to see how things sorted out.

Privately, a team official said Smith was told in January that he should sit down and think about his future. The team official said Smith was told, if he wanted out, that the team would work with him. But the official also said it was made clear to Smith that the Panthers will not simply release him or "give him away."

Smith joined the Panthers in 2001 and has spent his entire career in Carolina. The team official said if Smith wanted out, the team would seek draft picks or players as compensation in trade scenarios.

Pat Yasinskas covers the NFC South for ESPN.com.


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cool, now we have our first "would look good in black and gold" candidate

vasteeler wrote:

cool, now we have our first "would look good in black and gold" candidate

It's only moments away.....

vasteeler wrote:

cool, now we have our first "would look good in black and gold" candidate

I've been waiting for someone to start a "Steelers should sign Steve Smith" thread.

Wallace108 wrote:

vasteeler wrote:

cool, now we have our first "would look good in black and gold" candidate

I've been waiting for someone to start a "Steelers should sign Steve Smith" thread.

Uh oh! I bet over at Steelers Fever someone has already announced Smith as a "must sign." I tell ya, you would think that some Steelers fans haven't been following this team for more than a month. We don't sign big name FAs....we just don't.

mcg24 wrote:

Wallace108 wrote:

vasteeler wrote:

cool, now we have our first "would look good in black and gold" candidate

I've been waiting for someone to start a "Steelers should sign Steve Smith" thread.

Uh oh! I bet over at Steelers Fever someone has already announced Smith as a "must sign." I tell ya, you would think that some Steelers fans haven't been following this team for more than a month. We don't sign big name FAs....we just don't.

I still find it hard to believe we made a trade for Bettis.

You're right ... free agency is like Christmas, and we don't celebrate it.

BGSU A Dub wrote:

I don't think he'd be a good fit in the Black and Gold.[/font]

Dubs, I don 't think you understand the rules of this game ... of course he'd be a good fit for the Black and Gold. Everyone is.

Wallace108 wrote:

BGSU A Dub wrote:

I don't think he'd be a good fit in the Black and Gold.[/font]

Dubs, I don 't think you understand the rules of this game ... of course he'd be a good fit for the Black and Gold. Everyone is.

What about Mitch Berger?