In the two year since he became an Eagles first-round pick, Marcus Smith hasn’t done much to make people feel the team made the right choice in 2014.
Smith played sparingly at linebacker under former defensive coordinator Bill Davis and the bust word has been thrown around quite a bit. Smith’s chance to erase that label will come as a defensive end in Jim Schwartz’s defense and he believes that it will be a departure from his first two seasons.
“I understand it,” Smith said, via Philly.com. “I wanted to be on the field, but I wasn’t. I learned a lot of things from my first to second year. I think I’ve grown and matured a lot that this third year. You’ll see a different Marcus.”
Smith said he and Schwartz have talked about Jerry Hughes, who went from a disappointing linebacker with the Colts to 10 sacks off the edge as a defensive end under Schwartz in Buffalo. That led to a five-year, $45 million deal for Hughes and the loss of any bust tag that might have been placed on him when he was with the Colts.
Can lightning strike twice? Smith and the Eagles certainly hope so.