Smith also was the SEC Championship game MVP for the Bulldogs, who won the first of Kirby Smart’s three SEC title games with a 28-7 victory over Auburn in Atlanta. Smart was complimentary of the defensive star leading into the pivotal win over the Tigers that launched the Bulldogs into the first of four CFP appearances in the past nine years.
“Sideline-to-sideline, relentless, athletic, tough, competitive, leads, talks when needs to, quiet when he needs to be,” Smart said in 2017. “He has impeccable character. I’m just proud of how hard he works and that he buys into what we believe.”
Smith was selected No. 8 overall by the Chicago Bears in the 2018 NFL draft, signing an $18.47 million guaranteed contract that included an $11.51 signing bonus.
Smith spent his first 4-1/2 seasons in Chicago before being traded to the Baltimore Ravens on Oct. 31, 2022, for 2023 second-round pick A.J. Klein and a fifth-round pick.
The Ravens’ trade paid dividends quickly, as Smith was the AFC Defensive Player of the Month that December and was named to the Pro Bowl while earning first-team All-Pro honors.
Smith signed a 5-year contract with Baltimore prior to the 2023 season worth a reported $100 million that included a signing bonus of $22.5 million.
Smith’s 2023 season in Baltimore included a career-high 21-tackle effort in a game against Cleveland, as he joined Ravens’ legend Ray Lewis as the only franchise players to record 20-tackle games.
Smith leads the Ravens with 164 tackles this season in addition to recording 4 TFLs and 1.5 sacks in 16 games.
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