Pro Football Focus will be providing analysis for every major NFL signing and trade during the 2015 free-agency period, accounting primarily for the quality of the player and his fit with his new team and focusing less on the financial terms of the deal.
Here is the grade for the signing of Torrey Smith by the San Francisco 49ers.
Grade articles on every major deal
San Francisco 49ers: B
With the departures of Stevie Johnson and Michael Crabtree, the 49ers were in need of a weapon across from Anquan Boldin. Smith brings the type of quality deep threat that Colin Kaepernick has been without during his brief NFL career.
With that deep threat, however, comes a limited receiver. Smith's route tree in Baltimore was fairly simple, with 61 of his 105 targeted routes (including plays nullified by penalty) last season being go routes, hitches, or slants. Granted, he has been superb on those routes throughout his career, finishing in the top 10 of NFL receivers in deep yards in two out of the past three seasons. Few can match his speed and he'll be a welcome change of pace from the slower-footed Boldin and Crabtree.
The worry is that Smith is coming off a particularly down season after the aging Steve Smith came in and took the No. 1 role from him in Baltimore. He also has terribly inconsistent hands, with the second-worst drop rate in the league last season (18.33). If he can clean that up and get back to his 2013 drop rate (7.14), Smith will produce at a high level for the 49ers.