The smell is a result of the deer being gut shot. In the forty years that I've been in the meat business I've never believed in soaking meat in water for extended periods of time. How often does the normal shopper buy a T-bone, Pork Chops, or chicken breasts and then take them home and soak them in water for 3 - 5 days!
    The best way I've found to handle a gut shot deer is to rinse it with clean cold water after field dressing, then sprinkle the cavity with a covering of baking soda. Hang it overnight in a cooler at 32 - 36 degrees, then skin it and rinse it with cold water again. If you cannot hang it overnight, then bone it out the same day, avoiding the meat inside the cavity. If the boned out meat still smells strong then dissolve a cup of baking soda in a sink of cold clean water and soak your trim for an hour or two. Drain the sink and rinse the meat with cold water. This should reduce the smell to a great degree.
    As far as your meat, I would soak it in a water/baking soda mix before using it to reduce the smell. If grinding it use a 50/50 mix of venison to pork to overcome any off flavor that could be in the venison. If making steaks/chops or roasts, use marinades or season heavily.
    The question is not whether it's edible (it is), the question is how good it will taste.

Dave
D & R Processing / www.best-venison.com