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As BaltimoreRavens.com's Ryan Mink reported it, "The Ravens wasted no time snatching up the wide receiver they've been looking for over the past year. ..." A day after the Panthers released veteran wideout Steve Smith on Thursday afternoon, the Ravens agreed with him on a three-year contract.

The deal includes a $3.5 million signing bonus and calls for Smith to collect $12 million at max value, NFL Network's Ian Rapoport reported.

The Ravens wanted a wide receiver with production, someone who would make tough catches when they need them most. As fantasy football owners will attest to, productive is exactly what Smith is.

Smith turns 35 in May and is on the tail end of his career, but as Mink suggested, his body of work speaks for itself.

In seven of 13 career seasons, Smith has notched 1,000 receiving yards or more. He's fourth among active NFL pass catchers in career yardage (12,197), trailing only Atlanta tight end Tony Gonzalez, Indianapolis wide receiver Reggie Wayne and Houston wide receiver Andre Johnson.

Due in large part to injuries last year, Smith's stats dipped to 64 receptions for 745 yards and four touchdowns. He still received an overall grade of 11.4 from ProFootballFocus.com, which would have put him as the third-best wide receiver in this year's free agent class.

Even last year, Smith had more catches and yards than any Ravens wide receiver except Torrey Smith.

Smith and tight end Dennis Pitta to give Joe Flacco the kind of complete receiving corps he last had two years ago when Anquan Boldin was still on board.

Smith doesn't have the build of Boldin (Boldin is 6-1, 220 pounds while Smith is 5-9, 185 pounds), but they are similarly extremely competitive and reliable. And the Ravens receiving corps just got much better. But as NFL.com's Chris Wesseling notes, Smith has professed a preference for playing more snaps out of the slot, which is where he's likely headed with Smith, Jacoby Jones and Marlon Brown on the outside and Pitta as the "move" tight end.

Wesseling predicts that Smith will generate 55-60 receptions for 750-800 yards and a handful of touchdowns with the Ravens this season.

Wesseling went on to remind readers that from 2011 to 2012, Calvin Johnson was the only NFL player with more pass plays of at least 20 yards than Smith. Last season, there were 135 players with more pass plays of at least 20 yards.

"The Ravens can rest assured that Smith now fills that role," Wesseling summed up, "allowing Smith to fill possession receiver role more suited to his diminished speed and leaping ability."