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Philadelphia Eagles Can’t Give Up On Marcus Smith

By Samuel Sanchez

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Eric Hartline-USA TODAY Sports

It was around this time last year when Philadelphia Eagles fans pondered who the team would select in the first round of the 2014 NFL draft. That man was outside linebacker Marcus Smith. Smiths name being called was a shocker and a lot of casual fans asked the same question, “who?”. Now lets be honest, Smith has done nothing to silence the critics, but he hasn’t necessarily had the chance.

Smith finished the season with a disappointing goose egg in ever category. Marcus was ineffective in every role he played. Giving up on Smith would be the easy thing to do at this point. The amount of snaps Marcus got were ridiculously small. The guys ahead of Smith are great players, Connor Barwin, Trent Cole, and Brandon Graham. Every one of those players has either been to a pro bow, or has pro bowl potential.

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Excuses shouldn’t down play the reason Marcus couldn’t get on the field, but he was facing an uphill battle when he got to the Philadelphia Eagles. I loved Marcus coming out of Louisville, he has all the physical tools and fluid movements you want in a 3-4 OLB. Smith is a project, it’s rare that young pass rushers make a huge impact right away. Smiths lack of production in my opinion is overly bashed. The top two OLB’s selected in the 2014 draft, Oakland’s Khalil Mack, and Minnesota’s Anthony Barr both had 4 sacks apiece, not exactly setting the world on fire.

The Philadelphia Eagles drafted Marcus Smith with the future in mind. The immediate results were disappointing, but Marcus has everything to be a very good player. Smith didn’t complain once about his limited role, and even side stepped criticism from former Eagles coach Tra Thomas. Smith this offseason has reportedly gained weight, which he desperately needed to do, and is around 265 lbs.

Smith is saying, and doing the necessary things to become a better football player. Fans and analysts had a certain level of expectations that Marcus didn’t meet, now Smith is going through the fire. This shouldn’t matter if the Philadelphia Eagles themselves believe in Marcus, which i’m certain they do. The fans and “experts” can’t have a say on the teams future decisions with Smith.

Being patient isn’t what Eagle fans want to be, which is understandable, but given the proper coaching and time Marcus Smith will be a great player. I”m going to go on record and say he will be a 10-15 sack a year guy in this league. Very bold statement, but from what I’ve seen in his college days, his athleticism, his coachable character, and physical measureables all point to a pro bowl caliber player.

I really liked Marcus Smith coming out of college, and I still like him now. Fans and analysts can bash him, but he will produce in the NFL. With time the Philadelphia Eagles will have a fantastic player on their hands, but the team cannot give up on him yet. Marcus needs more snaps and opportunities to succeed and even fail. The only way a player can get better is through repetition and failure, the organization needs to give Smith that chance. The making of a quality player is in the works, but if the Philadelphia Eagles pull the plug on the Marcus Smith project, we’ll never see the full potential of a pro bowl caliber prospect. Marcus Smith can/will be a serious player in the NFL.

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