Steelers' Latest Signing, Jaylon Smith, Feels He Can Add Value With Knowledge Of Schemes

The Pittsburgh Steelers added yet another name to the linebacker room on Tuesday. Former Notre Dame standout and second-round draft pick Jaylon Smith was signed to the practice squad. As we’ve seen recently with Myles Jack, it could only be a matter of time before Smith is called upon. Similar to Jack, Smith has been without a team for over a month. 

He appeared in one game for the Las Vegas Raiders earlier this season in which he played 25 defensive snaps. Prior to that, Smith appeared for the New York Giants last season in which he played in a total of 13 games. For the NFC East squad, he started 11 games and played a total of 626 defensive snaps. Via Brooke Pryor of ESPN, the seventh-year linebacker spoke to the media on Wednesday about how he’s stayed in shape during his time off.

“I don't know what the role's going to be. [What] I'm going to do is make sure I'm ready for whatever. I'm a guy that's got experience, and I know I can still add a lot of value to a team... Being here in Pittsburgh, I understand the Steel Curtain tradition and for me, it's just about giving it all I got, applying pressure and really just adding value."

Smith is confident that he can still provide value for a team, specifically with his knowledge of schemes. Additionally, he referenced just how good of a relationship he has with Head Coach Mike Tomlin. The team was interested in him in the pre-draft process, but the Dallas Cowboys ultimately landed him with the 34th overall pick. Smith was taken nine picks after the Steelers took cornerback Artie Burns.

That didn't exactly work out for the Steelers, as the team will now face Burns this weekend in a big-time matchup. Smith was also selected two picks before Jack, amongst other big-time names. The talent is there, as evidenced by how high he was picked in the 2016 NFL Draft. Smith started out his NFL career quite well with the Cowboys, but quickly fell off. The Steelers linebacker room continues to be hampered with injuries over the past month or so. 

What Should The Steelers Expect From Smith?

After season-ending injuries to its top two starters, Elandon Roberts is now out with a pec injury. That means the team will now be without its top three linebackers in Week 17 and possibly beyond. Roberts has performed admirably for the Steelers this season, as he's proved to be a bargain. In the meantime, Mykal Walker has been asked to play quite a bit over the last few weeks. 

It’s come with mixed results, and Jack took away some of Walker’s playing time in Week 16. Jack did quite well too, as he played 47 (73.4%) defensive snaps in the victory over the Cincinnati Bengals. We'll see if the Steelers use Smith in action this year, but we're an injury away from his name being called upon. It's clear the talent is there, but it's been awhile since he has been a legitimate player.

Unfortunately, an ACL injury back in 2016 led to him falling to the second round. Before that, he was projected to be a first-round pick as one of the better linebackers in his class. While it's unrealistic to expect that kind of performance from him, we'll see if he can provide legitimate depth for Pittsburgh.

Do you expect Smith to make much of an impact for the Steelers? How do you think the team has done in replacing the injured linebackers? How do you think Jack performed in his first game back in Pittsburgh in Week 16?