FAB 2. An Open Letter To Donovan Smith

Donovan, I’m not quite sure what to make of your social media post this week where you openly shared your concerns about playing football this year amid the COVID-19 pandemic. I do understand your concerns, especially since you’re going to be a father in the coming weeks. Congratulations, by the way.

Bucs LT Donovan Smith – Photo by: Mary Holt/PR

You certainly have a right to share whatever you want to on social media, but I’m not sure that publicly sharing your indecision did you any good among the Bucs fan base. While you had your share of supporters following your Instagram post, you also heard from many who questioned you about not possibly playing too, didn’t you, Donovan?

You have to understand that you’re literally getting paid a king’s ransom to play a child’s game. There are people that have had to go back to work for far, far less money – like $24,500 a year rather than the $14.5 million you’re scheduled to make this year – to feed their families despite the COVID-19 outbreak here in Florida and elsewhere.

Donovan, what about the first responders like the police and fire rescue that risk exposure by coming into contact with the public on a daily basis? What about the front-line workers like the overworked doctors and nurses in hospitals that are in constant potential peril? What about the soldiers that fight to defend America’s freedom and actually have to leave their families to deploy overseas during the coronavirus pandemic?

What about the teachers that have to start school again in a few weeks, or the every day, working class men and women in the Tampa Bay area and across the country that have to return to work – some who have had to take pay cuts due to their businesses, or the companies they work, for having suffered economic losses from being shut down over the last couple of months? What about those that have lost their jobs due to businesses shutting down due to COVID-19?

Your suggestion that you should perhaps be entitled to a pay raise to play football during COVID-19 – while making $14.5 million this year – came across as incredibly tone deaf, by the way. That was not a good look, Donovan.

If I were you, I would have stayed silent until I made a decision, and then explain my reasoning for deciding to play – and sharing my concerns at that time – or my reasoning for deciding not to play. What you did only opened up yourself to some unnecessary criticism, especially if you ultimately decide to suit up this year.

Bucs LT Donovan Smith – Photo by: Mary Holt/PR

Football requires sacrifice, but I’m not telling you anything new. It requires sacrificing comfort as you train your body to withstand the rigors of physical combat during an NFL season. It requires sacrificing the time away from friends and loved ones and doing the things you would rather be doing than putting in the work at the gym or on the practice field getting ready for the season. It requires sacrificing your health when you suffer injuries.

Your quarterback, Tom Brady, is the oldest Buccaneer on the roster and is probably the most at-risk player on the team at age 42. He plans on playing.

Your head coach, Bruce Arians, is probably the most at-risk person in the building at age 67, having suffered through multiple types of cancer. He plans on coaching.

You’re going to have to make a sacrifice somewhere, Donovan.

Arians, Brady and I would suspect that most of your teammates appear to be ready to take the risk, too. If you are still concerned, I have some advice for you that I received from a Bucs fan who was an Army brat. He shared that soldiers like his father were deployed to go on six-month tours of duty and that they needed to say goodbye to their dad for half a year. That was just a way of life in the military.

If you do decide to play in 2020, perhaps you should deploy to a sequestered location for five or six months during football season to avoid the COVID-19 risk for your family. You could even FaceTime your family every day, which is a luxury that our men and women in the Armed Forces don’t have on a daily basis – and some of them have to leave newborn children behind because of their jobs.

The NBA has their players living in a sequestered “bubble” for the playoffs this summer. Granted that’s only going to be a month or so, whereas football season will be much longer. But something’s got to give, right?

If you opt out of playing in an attempt to keep your family safe – and please realize that a trip to the grocery store, a restaurant, a gas station or Wal-Mart could still result in you contracting COVID-19 during your hiatus away from football – you will miss out on the chance to play with Brady in what could be a magical season in Tampa Bay. You run the risk of being on the sidelines and an afterthought of something special in 2020 by not participating.

Bucs LT Donovan Smith – Photo by: Cliff Welch/PR

You could also be risking some or all of your paycheck, too. The league and the NFLPA is still determining what would happen to players who opt out and don’t want to play in 2020 due to COVID-19 concerns. Would the players get paid their full contracts, a partial amount or would this be treated like a hold out situation where there would be no payment?

Here is one more thing for you to consider, Donovan. Football is a harsh business. I’ve seen it first hand and talked to some general managers in Tampa Bay who have had to make some real cold-hearted decisions in the past.

This is my 25th year of covering the Buccaneers, and I’ve seen legends like John Lynch, Simeon Rice and Derrick Brooks abruptly cut and unceremoniously shown the door. I’ve seen a foundational player like Warren Sapp not given a contract extension just two years after winning a Super Bowl while still having some gas left in the tank.

Suppose you don’t play this year, and the Bucs are forced to start your backup, Josh Wells, for 16 games to protect Brady’s blindside. Suppose Wells gets beat and Brady gets hurt and is out for the season.

You would be watching the game on TV and you would know you’re better than Wells, and probably would not have allowed that sack if you were in the lineup. Bucs fans would surely know it too, and so would the organization itself.

How do you think Arians or general manager Jason Licht would feel if Brady were out for the year because the Bucs had to start a backup left tackle because you opted not to play?

Do you think you would get a contract extension in Tampa Bay? Do you think you would suit up in red and pewter again?

Donovan, you think you’ve caught some grief from Bucs fans on social media and talk radio over whiffing or getting beaten on a block that led to a Jameis Winston sack-fumble in the past? You haven’t seen anything yet if something happens to Brady, especially if you weren’t there to protect him.

Bucs LT Donovan Smith – Photo by: Cliff Welch/PR

I hope you do decide to play, Donovan, and if you’re really concerned about the health of your family keep in mind that sequestering yourself in a luxury hotel room for five to six months would ensure their safety. That is a short-term option you could consider.

You’re essentially in a contract year as 2020 is the end of the guaranteed money in your three-year deal, which expires after the 2021 season. I’d love to see Brady help you elevate your game to an even higher payday following the 2021 campaign. Donovan, you have the talent to become the greatest offensive tackle in franchise history – even greater than Paul Gruber and Donald Penn if you continue to improve.

Your decision is a personal one, and it is an important one for you, your family and the Tampa Bay Buccaneers. I hope you find the wisdom and peace you need to make the best decision possible. Good luck and stay safe, Donovan.