Name: Brandon Smith

School: Penn State

Year: Jr

Position: Linebacker

Measurables: 6’3 1/2, 250 lbs

Stats: 

General Info:

Attended Louisa County High School in Louisa, Virginia. Three-time letterman and a two-time captain. He played in the Under Armour All-America Game. Smith was the Gatorade Player of the Year in Virginia. He collected 135 total tackles, 15 tackles for a loss, 6 sacks, and 9 forced fumbles as a Senior. He had an even bigger Junior season with 165 tackles, 30 tackles for a loss, 11 sacks, 5 forced fumbles, and even blocked 6 kicks. He was rated a five-star prospect by 247 and a four-star by Rivals and ESPN. He also played some basketball as a junior. The former Nittany Lion signed with Penn State out of high school and played in 13 games as a true freshman collecting only 14 tackles and 2 tackles for a loss on the year. Smith took over as a starter in the shortened 2020 COVID season and started all 9 games. He collected a total of 37 tackles with 8 tackles for a loss, two sacks, and an interception. Smith injured his lower right leg against Iowa but returned only missing a few plays. He signed a NIL deal with Roc Nation. Smith also wore Riddell's new prototype helmet for the 2021 season. Smith moved to play the weakside linebacker role in 2021 after playing the strong side in 2020. 2021 was his second full season as a starter, he started all 12 games. He finished the season with 81 total tackles, 9 tackles for a loss, 2 sacks, 1 forced fumble, and 5 pass breakups. Smith declared for the draft with eligibility remaining. He also opted out of the Outback bowl.

Positional Skills:

Strengths

Smith is an elite-level athlete and it shows on the field, he is fast and explosive. He also has good quickness with a solid backpedal. Smith's feet are always on the move; he does not stand still after the snap. Occasionally he will get physical with offensive linemen. He can easily defeat blocks from receivers using his strength and explosiveness. He has the speed and explosiveness to threaten the edge as a pass rusher. Smith shows good click and close technique explodes out of it. He has shown to have good cover skills for a college linebacker. The former Nittany Lion has shown on film he can carry a tight end up the seam. Smith has experience at both SAM and WILL spots. He's shown he can slip blocks. On film, he shows an ability to find the right gap and flow to the ball. There are times when he does play physically and you can see the potential. At times shows an ability to take on blockers and still effect or even tackle the runner with one arm.

Weaknesses

His motor does run hot and cold from game to game. You don't necessarily see it from play to play through. He has a habit of trying to shoulder tackle and it doesn’t work. He missed 15 tackles on the year. Smith is inconsistent with how he takes on blockers sometimes he tries to take on blockers with his shoulder or avoid them which will take him out of the play. He has been an inconsistent hitter on film, more of a drag-down tackler. Plays with his pads high when dealing with linemen. he needs more strength. He has not shown he can stack and shed yet. Smith is inconsistent in finding the right gap to flow to the ball. He has trouble finding that balance between being aggressive but also being patient; sometimes he can be too aggressive and other times too patient. Smith has a habit of Looping around instead of pressing the line in the run game. He can be fooled by play action

Fit with the Packers:

Brandon Smith is an athletic freak of a linebacker with massive potential, but he hasn’t come close to reaching it. When watching his film, you are left wondering if he will. He has similarities to Oren Burks. He is already a good coverage linebacker for a guy as big as he is. His instincts just don’t seem to be there or they are a tick or two late. His technique still needs work; like his ability to stack and shed. he needs to bend his knees more to unlock his explosiveness. He can be a modern-day sideline to sideline linebacker who can play all three downs if he can hit his potential. At the very least he should be a good special teamer who can see snaps as a coverage linebacker. Fit with the Packers is going to depend on value. If they take him on day two expecting him to come in and be the WILL next to Campbell then they will be disappointed, but if they take him on day 3 with the intentions of using him on special teams and a #3 linebacker and seeing if they could develop him then he would be a great fit.