Torrey Smith Excited to Work With Kyle Shanahan

A lot of San Francisco 49ers players and fans are excited now that Kyle Shanahan is the head coach. But none any more excited than receiver Torrey Smith.

From around 2011-2014, Torrey Smith was an emerging receiver for the Baltimore Ravens. He was a deep threat with blazing speed and he alway found a way to get behind the defense. Then the San Francisco 49ers signed him in 2015 and he disappeared.

No, he didn’t lose his speed or become a bad wide receiver after signing a four-year deal with the team. But he did have a problem with his talent fitting into what his head coaches did. Neither Jim Tomsula nor Chip Kelly had much of the vertical game in their offenses.

And the vertical game is how Smith became known NFL-worldwide. So in 2015, his targets dropped by 30 from his last year in Baltimore and by another 13 in 2018. But now, Smith is excited with Shanahan coming on board because he is an aggressive play caller.

You saw what he did as the offensive coordinator of the Atlanta Falcons offense. No, the 49ers don’t have WRs Julio Jones and Mohamed Sanu or RB Devontae Freeman. But Smith, a deep threat himself, is confident Shanahan will know how to use him.

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Smith told CSN Bay Area. “It’s not rocket science. Football is football. Plays are plays. It’s the way they scheme it up and put it together. The way I watch it from afar, (Shanahan) tailors it to people’s strengths, which is always a plus. So I’m excited to see what his plan is for us.”

“The offense, I have experience with it,” Smith said. “I’m interested to see how he teaches it. You just have to execute. But with his track record, it kind of speaks for itself. I’m excited for him to have that opportunity. He’s a young guy. I feel like he could fit in our locker room.

“He looks that young. He has a proven track record and he knows what he’s doing. It’s his time, so I’m excited for him.”

Shanahan will have to make the best of the talent he has on the roster in 2017 including Smith. So Smith, being the most talented receiver on the team now, knows he’ll see more targets. Then there’s the deep balls Smith is known for that should be come his way.

Another important part is what Shanahan does with his QBs. So if Colin Kaepernick were smart, he would opt in and see where Shanahan can take his game. We’ve already seen what he’s done with guys like Matt Schaub and Robert Griffin III.