Steve Smith burns former team with crazy tipped-pass touchdown bomb

So this is what blood and guts looks like.

You just knew it was going to be tough for the Carolina Panthers to contain their former superstar receiver on Sunday, and Steve Smith — now a Baltimore Raven after playing for the Panthers for 13 years — clearly had a little extra motivation coming into Sunday’s game.

He apparently also has a little luck on his side, too.

Smith was on the receiving end of a freaky play where Ravens tight end Owen Daniels tipped a pass from Joe Flacco and it landed into the hands of Smith — running full speed, right in stride — en route to the end zone for a 61-yard touchdown catch.

Smith, once the king of end-zone celebrations, finished the score with a simple flourish: a basic, fairly respectful bow. So his emotions were in check for that one, despite spewing some anger — including the “blood-and-guts” promise for the game after the Panthers released him — in the offseason.

It was clear the Ravens were not going to wait too long to get Smith involved. They threw to him on their first offensive play, and Smith took out some of his frustrations by stiff-arming Panthers safety Roman Harper angrily on a 17-yard catch and run.

Smith totaled five catches for 122 yards prior to halftime and added a second touchdown despite Panthers cornerback Melvin White essentially tackling Smith before the TD catch.

The Panthers could use a little more than a few pairs of goggles.

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Eric Edholm is a writer for Shutdown Corner on Yahoo Sports. Have a tip? Email him at [email protected] or follow him on Twitter! Follow @Eric_Edholm