Jaylon Smith Would Be A Steal In The 2nd

Heading into this year's NFL draft, Notre Dame's linebacker Jaylon Smith was regarded by most as a top five player, some even thought he was the best player in the draft. NFL Network's Daniel Jeremiah is a big believer in Smith, and shared a video displaying Smith's great tackling technique.

Notre Dame LB Jaylon Smith...this should be a teaching tape. https://t.co/xraShjozVH

— Daniel Jeremiah (@MoveTheSticks) June 13, 2015

Now this was all before Smith suffered an major knee injury, tearing his ACL and LCL ligaments during the Fiesta Bowl vs Ohio State.  Then to make matters worse during the NFL combine medical exam, teams found out that he could have possible nerve damage in the peroneal nerve which helps aid movement and supply sensation to the lower leg, foot, and toes. If true that could derail Smith's rookie season and could possibly be career ending. After hearing that news, some NFL teams took Smith completely off their draft boards, raising the question of how far could Smith fall in the upcoming draft.

Well good news came from Notre Dame's pro day, as Jaylon Smith told reporters that he is getting stronger, and has been leg pressing over 600lbs and squatting 400lbs during his rehab per Eric Edholm of yahoosports.com.

“Rehab is going great. I am leg-pressing over 600 pounds right now. I am squatting over 400 pounds. I am getting that strength back. It’s just a matter of time.”

It sure looks like Smith is on his way to full recovery, and he also did 24 bench press reps of 225 which matched top ten prospect LT Ronnie Stanley. Smith has a medical re-check on April 14-15th which will tell us more, but this is a great start for Smith.

I will say this if the Bucs doctors feel comfortable with Smith and he passes their tests, Gm Jason Licht needs to find a way to get him on this team. If the Bucs decide to trade down out of the top ten, Smith should be one of the options to take, or for some reason he falls to the second round there should be no hesitation to take him with that selection. Smith is a great player on the field, and even better person off it, he loves the game and would be a instant impact player for this team. If for some reason, he cant play during the 2016 season, he could still have an impact according to former teammate Jarret Grace.

“He can pick up on defenses and teach his position, coach everyone around him,” Grace said. “If you’re not going to have his presence on the field, you’re going to have someone who is very detail-oriented in the locker room. If he wasn’t in class, he was trying to soak up as much football as he could. He didn’t want to have to rely on his athletic ability.

“You see plenty of tremendous athletes out there, popping off crazy numbers at the combine and stuff. But he has that and the other side, the [intangible] side. An 80 percent Jaylon Smith is going to be better than everyone else in the draft.”

Jaylon Smith would make the Bucs linebacking core one of the best in the league, and Smith could provide edge rush as well, playing similar to the way Von Miller plays for the Broncos. Smith is a tremendous athlete and player, if good news comes from his medical re-check, he deserves a look from the Bucs maybe as high as 9th overall.