Marcus Smith sat back in his locker and winced. He had just played about 70 snaps in the Eagles’ preseason opener against the Colts, and that’s more snaps than he played in his entire rookie year.
“Sore,” he said. “But that’s OK. Felt good to be out there that much.”
Smith, so disappointing as a rookie last year, had an encouraging preseason debut Sunday afternoon, and although the official stats aren’t overwhelming — one tackle, one pass knockdown — he was in on at least two other tackles, was solid in his pass coverage and got some good pressures on the line of scrimmage.
He had no mental breakdowns, and considering where he was last year — often looking lost — this was an enormous improvement.
“It’s nice to go in film and know that maybe you made some mistakes but just not be as mad as you were a year before,” Smith said. “I just felt more comfortable out there.”
Smith, the 26th player taken in last year’s draft, has looked significantly better at practice so far, and he was able to carry that over onto the field Sunday in a game the Eagles won 36-10 at the Linc (see Instant Replay).
There was nothing dramatic. Just solid football. And that’s a huge leap from a year ago.
“I felt comfortable,” he said. “I wish I could have made more plays. I do feel a lot more comfortable than last year. I just want to make more plays if I’m going to play that many snaps.”
During one series in the first quarter, Smith showed up on three straight snaps. First, he made a nice solo tackle for no gain on running back Zurlon Tipton, then he dropped back and had nice coverage on tight end Coby Fleener on a pass Matt Hasselbeck threw incomplete, then he had good push on a third-down incompletion.
“It was OK, but I felt like to my standards, I want to make those plays,” he said. “Even though I’m getting pressure on the quarterback, I want to be able to get him down and cause a fumble and turn the game around. That’s the next step.”
Smith played in only eight games last year, none the last five weeks of the season. He got on the field on defense in only two of the Eagles’ last 10 games.
With Travis Long out for the year, Smith is really the only viable backup outside linebacker on the roster behind starters Connor Barwin and Brandon Graham.
“With him having a year under his belt and us just telling him not to worry about what he can’t control, he’s really just focused on making sure he knows the plays so he can move faster,” Graham said after the game.
“We know he’s talented. It’s all about his confidence, and now I think he’s confident that he can get the job done, and as we go during the preseason I think it’ll only grow. He looks like a totally different guy.”
Everybody wants to know what’s different about Smith from last year to this year.
Head coach Chip Kelly had a simple answer.
“Birthdate,” he said. “He’s a year older. He’s not new. He’s been there, done that. This isn’t his first preseason game, this isn’t his first training camp.
“There’s kind of a calming sense around him. He’s got a better grasp of what we’re trying to do. He’s really showed up in our tranining sessions and he showed up today. We’re encouraged by his growth.
“He’s just carrying himself in a different manner. He was excited about going out and playing in the football game today. We’re excited to see where this goes.”
It’s a long way from a sound preseason game against the Colts in mid-August to being a productive pro.
Smith still has a ways to go, and he knows that.
But so far, so good.
“Today was a good step,” he said. “First game, see how I did playing all the special teams and playing defense, and now I know what to expect and be ready for the next one.
“We practice against the Ravens this week and I just want to get better. And I can’t wait for the next preseason game.”