Marcus Smith, former first round pick, expected to be cut and Jaguars should take flier

The Jacksonville Jaguars still need depth and help at defensive end and former first round pick Marcus Smith could be available.

The Jacksonville Jaguars are very close to having a top level defense. They’ve shored up the secondary with draft picks (Jalen Ramsey) and free agent additions (Tashaun Gipson, A.J. Bouye, Barry Church), while amassing talent in the front seven as well (Calais Campbell, Malik Jackson, Yannick Ngakoue, Telvin Smith, etc.).

One area they still need help in is defensive end, where it’s becoming more important for former first round pick Dante Fowler Jr. to take a big step in his third (really second) season.

Another former first round pick who could help the Jaguars is currently on the Philadelphia Eagles – Marcus Smith.

Jimmy Kempski of the Philly Voice has stated it’s a matter of when, not if, Smith gets released by the Philadelphia Eagles. He stated as much multiple times in a recent mailbag column:

"Question from Papale86: If Marcus Smith is cut, do they bring in someone else at camp?When Marcus Smith is cut, sure, they’ll fill his roster spot, but they don’t necessarily need to do so with the idea in mind that they now have some sort of hole at defensive end.With Marcus Smith contributing very little at DE, what are your thoughts on him potentially being moved to a backup linebacker spot, where they lack depth?He’s gone."

That’s pretty damning stuff from Kempski and it’s warranted given Smith’s lack of production as a pass rusher. He’s been used in both a 3-4 and 4-3 scheme and has failed to make an impact in either one.

Pro Football Focus summed up how disappointing his production has actually been:

"Smith played 220 snaps last season, 135 rushing the passer. He only managed 11 total pressures, including two sacks."

"Although his snaps have increased each year since entering the league (74 as a rookie, 131 in year two), his level of play has not. Smith’s overall grade dropped from 51.1 in 2015 to 46.2 in 2016."

"Smith even found it difficult to beat backup offensive linemen in the preseason. He only had nine total pressures in 121 pass-rush snaps throughout his career."

The Jaguars made a similar move last year when they signed – and eventually released – another former first round bust in Bjoern Werner. I could see the Jaguars doing something similar with Smith because why not?