The key to good tasting Bluefish is to bleed them out right away. Cooking them in Mayo or Horseradish will suck the oil out of them. I used to fish the Rips off the end of Long Island and always had a blast down there with the Bluefish. One time I pulled in and landed one that had to be almost 2 feet long. It hit the boat floor, threw my hook and jumped right out of my 22 footer cabin cruiser. My friends and I were pissed. We caught over 60 Bues that day in just over 5 hours. The limit was 10 per person. All the small ones went back in and we took home 30 of them.I don't have much experience with Smallmouths (but I hear they are great fighters) but comparing Striped Bass ... pound for pound, Bluefish easily outfight them, as does anything in the Tuna family.
Hook a Bluefish weighting in the teens on a spinning rod, and you will have all the fight you ever wished for. Striped Bass twice their size will not give you as much fight. Too bad Bluefish are not good eating because they are the scrappiest fish I have ever caught (and be careful when you unhook them, or you will be scarred for life - and they will go for you!)
A brief marinate to remove the fish flavor, and some Oregano will make them edible.