Notre Dame’s Jaylon Smith has declared for the 2016 NFL Draft.
Notre Dame‘s star linebacker Jaylon Smith has announced he will declare for the 2016 NFL Draft, despite the fact he tore his ACL and MCL in the team’s Fiesta Bowl loss to Ohio State.
The talented linebacker underwent surgery to repair his ACL and MCL, and he expects to make a full recovery in time to play in the NFL in 2016, Brian Hamilton for Sports Illustrated told Bleacher Report.
Smith was coming into the 2015 season looking to make a statement, both as one of the nation’s top linebackers and an NFL prospect. Smith went above and beyond expectations, landing him the prestigious Butkus award for being the nation’s top linebacker.
NFL.com’s Daniel Jeremiah polled some NFL personal executives on who they thought the safest potential prospects out there were, and Smith was the only player who was named more than once. Smith led the Fighting Irish with 112 tackles this season, which was almost double that of Max Redfield who was second on the team with 68 tackles. Smith also amassed nine tackles for loss, two fumble recoveries, and five passes defended in 2015.
The NFL has transitioned into a pass-first league, which makes it imperative that all linebackers have the ability to drop back and cover running backs, slot receivers, and tight ends. If a player can’t be versatile on the defensive side of the ball, their career will be short-lived.
At 6-foot-2 and 235 pounds, Smith has the ability to rush the passer and cover receivers that line up in the slot or running backs that come from the backfield. As long as Smith’s recovery goes as planned, his value will be insurmountable at the next level because of the league’s growing need for athletic linebackers.