Former No. 2 overall pick Jason Smith trying to make it with Saints

Former No. 2 overall pick Jason Smith trying to make it with Saints

By Ted Lewis - Advocate sportswriter


If it weren’t for JaMarcus Russell, Jason Smith might be in contention for biggest draft bust of the 21st century.

The No. 2 overall pick in 2009 by the St. Louis Rams, Smith, a tackle from Baylor, looked to be the kind of player who fills a team’s needs at the position for a decade.

Instead, just four years later, Smith finds himself battling for his career, contending with Charles Brown and rookie Terron Armstrong at left tackle with the Saints.

Multiple concussions that caused him to miss 19 games certainly didn’t help Smith’s progress, but he was generally regarded as ill-prepared to handle the position on the NLF level. In August, the Rams traded Smith to the New York Jets where he played a backup role.

The Saints signed him as unrestricted free agent in April.

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