Tampa Bay Buccaneers cornerback Ryan Smith has been suspended four games for violating the NFL's performance-enhancing drugs policy, according to Adam Schefter of ESPN.
Smith is coming off of a 2018 campaign in which he played all 16 games and registered 38 tackles, an interception, a forced fumble, a fumble recovery and six passes defended.
The 25-year-old, who played his collegiate football at North Carolina Central, was originally selected by the Buccaneers in the fourth round (108th pick overall) of the 2016 NFL Draft.
He went on to appear in 14 contests during his rookie year but did not log a statistic. Then, in 2017, Smith participated in 15 games, totaling 61 tackles, a couple of forced fumbles, a fumble recovery and five passes defended.
Smith played four seasons at North Carolina Central, capping off his collegiate career by posting 52 tackles, a couple of picks and nine passes defended during his senior year.
The Buccaneers won just five games this past season, resulting in the firing of head coach Dirk Koetter after three unsuccessful years at the helm. Tampa Bay then replaced Koetter with Bruce Arians, who did not coach in 2018 but last served as head coach of the Arizona Cardinals in 2017.
The Bucs have been one of the least fortunate franchises in the NFL over the last decade and change, as they have not made the playoffs since the 2007 campaign, representing the longest active playoff drought in the NFC and the second-longest in the NFL behind the Cleveland Browns, who have not qualified for the postseason since the 2002 campaign.
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