How TE Jonnu Smith's Emergence Unlocks Atlanta Falcons' Offensive Upside
The Atlanta Falcons have a bevy of talented offensive weapons, spearheaded by a trio of top-10 draft picks in tight end Kyle Pitts, receiver Drake London and running back Bijan Robinson.
But through five games, none of those three leads the Falcons in receiving yards.
That honor belongs to tight end Jonnu Smith, whose 246 yards are tops on the team with Pitts' 208 yards following behind.
Smith, acquired this offseason via trade from the New England Patriots, has caught 21 passes, all coming after being shutout in the season opener.
Among those with at least five targets, Smith's 77.8 percent catch rate trails only Robinson. His 11 first down receptions are tied with London for the most on the team. He's proving to be a reliable target for second-year quarterback Desmond Ridder.
The cost to acquire Smith? A seventh-round draft pick in April, No. 245 out of 259 overall selections.
Better yet, the Falcons have Smith under contract for next season, too, and his base salary for this year is only $6 million, according to OverTheCap.
Much of the attention surrounding Atlanta's offense rightfully centered around high-profile free agency signings such as safety Jessie Bates III and defensive back David Onyemata, and Smith largely flew under the radar as a "wait and see" piece.
It was for good reason, as Smith was fresh off two disappointing seasons in New England after rising to stardom with the Tennessee Titans - but one of the biggest keys to his prior success was working with coach Arthur Smith, whom he reunited with in Atlanta.
Jonnu, like he did while Arthur was his tight end's coach and offensive coordinator in Tennessee, is now back in the spotlight and has emerged as an integral part of the Falcons' offense.
But the 28-year-old's impact goes beyond his stout production; defenses have been focused on preparing for Atlanta's trio of top-10 picks and notorious rushing attack, and Smith is making them pay.
"It gives you another weapon," Arthur Smith said. "We've got a lot of weapons, and Jonnu is somebody that's made plays in big-time games, and he's been good. So when you've got a lot of belief, okay, pick your poison, and Jonnu is one of those guys, he's a great catch-and-run player. He's hard to tackle. Glad he's here.”
Atlanta Falcons tight end Jonnu Smith has rediscovered his previous form with coach Arthur Smith.
USA Today Sports
Falcons offensive coordinator Dave Ragone was quick to point out Jonnu's familiarity with Arthur; during the latter's two years as offensive coordinator, the former caught 76 passes for 887 yards and 11 touchdowns and parlayed his success into a four-year, $50 million contract with the Patriots.
But things simply didn't work out to the extent either side hoped, as Smith recorded 55 receptions for 539 yards and just one touchdown in New England. He failed to hit 30 catches in either of his two seasons.
So, this spring, the Patriots moved on, and Ragone said the Falcons are fortunate they were well-positioned to land him.
Now, Atlanta has a one-two punch it's confident in with Pitts and Jonnu Smith, and No. 3 tight end MyCole Pruitt was dubbed an underrated team by Arthur Smith.
The tight end's room has strong camaraderie, and Pitts praised the leadership that Smith, now in his seventh professional season, has brought to the group this year.
And so, Smith's arrival to Atlanta has not only fostered on-field value, but he's provided a steady sounding board for Pitts, who noted he's learned a lot from his veteran counterpart already.
"His personality, his style on the field, off the field," Pitts said. "There's multiple things you can just ask him, and he'll pretty much have the answer for you because he's been in the league for some time now."
Jonnu Smith is on pace to finish the season with 71 receptions for 836 yards, which would shatter previous career-highs of 41 and 448, both achieved under Arthur Smith during 2020, their final year together.
With 246 receiving yards already, Jonnu's already topped last year's 14-game total of 245. He's currently fifth in the NFL amongst tight ends in receiving yards and tied for eighth in catches.
And still, the Falcons feel that Smith's value off the field may be just as important. He's added another veteran presence alongside Pruitt to give the tight ends room two experienced leaders for Pitts (third season) and John FitzPatrick (second season).
The energy that comes out of this room has spread throughout the rest of the locker room, Ragone believes, and each member in the room pushes one another, only elevating the level of play.
So, when combining his career-best start on the field with the intangible assets off it, Smith's impact has far exceeded what many anticipated - and Atlanta's thrilled it landed his talents at such a discounted price.
“What you love about him, what you love about that tight end room is the level in which they go out there and compete," Ragone said. "There’s a fierce competitiveness, and the way they go out here and they approach their job. But he’s part of that mix, and he’s a guy who has played in big football games.
"He’s a guy who can do a lot of different things for us. But I think that’s what the whole tight end group provides for us is the flexibility.”
In each of Arthur Smith's first two seasons in Atlanta, unexpected contributors rose to the forefront of the offense's production.
First, it was running back Cordarrelle Patterson, who turned a one-year, $3 million contract largely centered around his return ability into a breakthrough campaign during which he became the first player in franchise history to record both 500 rushing and receiving yards.
Last year, running back Tyler Allgeier emerged from fifth-round pick and healthy scratch in Week 1 to set Atlanta's rookie rushing record with 1,035 yards.
And this season, the honor may just go to Jonnu Smith, who's providing a stellar early return of investment and is on pace to set career highs by the bye week in mid-November.
Best of all?
Smith's emergence only helps Pitts, London, Robinson and the rest of Atlanta's offense with spacing and overall defensive attention, which makes life easier for Ridder as he tries to show he's the team's long-term answer under center.
But again, it's not just that; it's the leadership, the competitiveness and the consistency that has not only elevated those around him but put himself on pace for new career highs.
And that, by all accounts, is quite the start for a player acquired for just a seventh-round pick in March.
