When Lee Smith was signed by the Buffalo Bills he replaced free-agent signing Jake Fisher. Fisher, signed as a tight end, had spent the last few years with the Cincinnati Bengals as a tackle. The message Buffalo was sending loud and clear was that they wanted a tight end who could block. This philosophy has drawn criticism toward the Buffalo Bills as this has also meant having a role for a tight end with questionable receiving abilities.
When Smith is in the game it allows the defense to key in on the other four players.