The Tampa Bay Buccaneers today signed tackle Donovan Smith to a contract extension. As per team policy, terms of the contract were not disclosed.
"Donovan has been a mainstay on our offensive line for the past six seasons and has helped elevate our offense into one of the NFL's best," said Buccaneers General Manager Jason Licht. "His durability and leadership have been a critical part of our success. Donovan was outstanding throughout our Super Bowl run and we are very excited to have him as a pillar of our line for years to come."
Smith (6-6, 338) has played in and started 94 regular season games since entering the league as a second-round selection (No. 34 overall) by Tampa Bay in the 2015 NFL Draft. Since becoming a starter in 2015, Smith has been part of a Buccaneers offensive line that has helped block for an offense that ranks third in third-down conversion rate (43.2), while recording the third-most yards per game in the NFL (380.5), second-most passing yards per game (278.5), fourth-highest yards per play (5.82) and eighth-most points per game (24.8) in that span.
Since entering the league in 2015, Smith has played the third-most snaps of any offensive player in the NFL with 6,684. He began his career by starting 77-consecutive regular season games – the second-most consecutive starts to begin a career in team history, trailing only Paul Gruber.
Smith started all four postseason games on Tampa Bay's run to a Super Bowl LV win over the Kansas City Chiefs – the first four playoff games of his NFL career. Throughout that four-game stretch, Smith did not allow a sack, did not commit a penalty and allowed just four total pressures, according to Pro Football Focus.
During the 2020 regular season, Smith started all 15 games in which he played at left tackle for an offensive line that allowed a sack on 3.51 percent of all pass attempts, the second-lowest mark in the NFL and the second-lowest mark in a season in team history. He helped block for an offense that finished second in passing yards per game (289.1), third in points per game (30.8), seventh in yards per game (384.1) and seventh in yards per play (6.04).
Smith has been very active in the Tampa Bay community during his six seasons with the Buccaneers. Smith is a member of the Buccaneers Social Justice Player Board that was established in 2018 and has also taken a lead role in continuing the team's annual 'Turkey Time with the O-line' event, providing thousands of families in need with Thanksgiving meals.
The Hempstead, New York, native played at Owings Mills High School in Baltimore before continuing his career collegiately at Penn State. He wears No. 76 for Tampa Bay.
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