How much will Notre Dame linebacker Jaylon Smith’s gruesome knee injury affect his draft stock?
The Notre Dame Fighting Irish lost a key player in linebacker Jaylon Smith against the Ohio State Buckeyes during the Fiesta Bowl on Friday. Smith’s leg and knee bent in a way that legs shouldn’t bend and he had to be carted off the field after.
While it was a huge blow to Notre Dame’s chances on the field, it also comes at a price for Smith. As one of the top linebackers in the country, Smith was a projected a high pick by many analysts and experts on the draft.
Many mocks had him going inside the top-10, with a few having him going in the top-5.
Now that he has suffered a big injury, which will prevent him from possibly seeing any time as a rookie, there is a big question that has to be asked. Will the injury to Smith affect his draft stock?
There’s going to be a lengthy rehab process and not taking place in off-season activities will certainly set Smith behind. It takes time for a healthy rookie to adjust in this league, and Smith’s rookie season will almost certainly be a wash now.
He probably isn’t a top-10 pick anymore, but there will be plenty of teams that could use a second-day pick on Smith based off talent alone.
He’s got speed on the outside and can do a variety of things from getting after the passer and peeling off and closing the edge.
Now, teams are going to have to wait and see whether or not he can still make those same moves before they commit to him. He probably is too risky to spend an early pick on now, but a mid-round pick could be the right spot for teams to spend a pick on him.
It’s a shame that Smith’s career had to go this route, but he’s a hard worker and will fight to come back from this.