Jaylon Smith is a versatile American football linebacker who plays for the Dallas Cowboys. He began his NCAA career with Notre Dame in 2013, following an illustrious high school career in which he was named Indiana Mr. Football and received the 2012 High School Butkus Award. He played both running back and linebacker at Bishop Luers High School, and was listed as the best outside linebacker recruit in his class by both Scout.com and Rivals.com. Jaylon all 13 games in his freshman season with Notre Dame, recording 67 tackles, including 6.5 for loss, one forced fumble, and one interception. He was also drafted 34th overall by the Cowboys in the second round of the 2016 NFL Draft. Additionally, Smith has announced on 25th May 2021 that he decided to change his number from 54 to 9 from his college days in Notre Dame per the new NFL jersey rules.
Cowboys Decide To Release LB Jaylon Smith
The Cowboys have decided to part ways with veteran linebacker Jaylon Smith. In his sixth season, Smith has seen limited snaps this season, both in base packages and in the nickel defense. The move doesn’t save the Cowboys anything on this year’s salary cap since his salary was guaranteed but potentially saves them from a guaranteed salary in 2022 if he were injured. The club explored trade possibilities but nothing materialized.
Cowboys reshaped the linebacker position this past offseason, signing veteran Keanu Neal and drafting Micah Parsons in the first round and Jabril Cox in the fourth round. The added talent and competition reduced Smith’s role. Through the first four games, he played roughly 56% of snaps and ranked fourth on the team with 19 tackles.
Releasing Smith is likely viewed as a surprise move given this year’s cap implications a guaranteed $7.2 million, according to reports but the Cowboys’ newfound linebacker depth was an overriding factor. So now the Cowboys’ resurgent defense will move forward without Smith, their former captain, who will immediately become a free agent as a vested veteran.
Famous For
- Being an American football linebacker.
- Playing for the NFL team, Dallas Cowboys.
Source: @instagram.com/yolo_smith9
Where is Jaylon Smith from?
Jaylon Smith was born on 14th June 1995 in Fort Wayne, Indiana, the U.S. He holds American nationality and belongs to African-American ethnicity. Similarly, his religion is Christian and his race is black. Smith has celebrated his 26th birthday as of 2021 and as per his birthdate, his zodiac sign is Gemini. He is the son of Roger Smith (father) and Sophia Woodsen (mother). He has two siblings named Rod Smith and Saniya Smith.
Regarding Smith’s education, he attended Bishop Luers High School where he was a letterman in football, basketball, and track.
What does Jaylon Smith do for a living?
High school career
- Jaylon Smith jumps off his career being named the Mr. Football award winner for the state of Indiana while playing for Bishop Luers High School whereas he also helped Bishop Luers to 40-28 over Evansville Mater Dei in the 2012 Indiana 2A title game while rushing for 150 yards and scoring three touchdowns, as Bishop Luers became first Indiana 2A school to win four straight state titles.
- He finished with 1,265 rushing yards and 18 TDs on 176 attempts as a senior in 2012 to go with 10 receptions for 66 yards and two more TDs. Defensively, he recorded 72 tackles (43 solos), 19.5 tackles for loss, eight sacks, two forced fumbles, one fumble recovery, and seven pass deflections.
- Then he played basketball as a freshman, sophomore, and junior, and was teammates with former Ohio State basketball player Deshaun Thomas.
- He took fourth in the shot put, with a PR of 14.81 meters (48 ft 6 in), and ran the lead leg on first-place 4 × 100 m (43.43) and the fourth leg on second-place 4 × 400 m (3:27.08) at the 2013 IHSAA T&F Sectional.
- He anchored the Bishop Luers’ 4 × 100 m relay team at the 2013 SAC T&F Meet, winning the event with a time of 42.91 seconds, and the 4 × 400 m, which finished in third place, while also placing third in the shot put (47 ft 5 in) and eight in the 400-meter dash (53.46 s).
- Later on 6th February 2013, Jaylon signed his letter of intent and committed to attend and play football at the University of Notre Dame. He was considered the best outside linebacker recruit of his class by Rivals.com and Scout.com. He played in the 2013 U.S. Army All-American Bowl.
College career
- Jaylon won the starting DOG linebacker position beating out Ben Councell in 2013 as well as he recorded 67 tackles, including 6.5 for loss, one forced fumble, three pass breakups, and one interception starting all 13 games.
- His best game came in a 34-30 victory against Arizona State, where he recorded nine tackles, including 1.5 for loss however he notched his first career interception against USC on a pass thrown by Cody Kessler.
- Smith was one of three players to start all 13 games on defense, recording 112 tackles, including nine for loss, and 3.5 sacks whereas he was also named the FBS Independent Co-Defensive Player of the Year.
- Jaylon played in all 13 games with 115 tackles, nine tackles for loss, one sack, five passes defended two fumble recoveries, and 1 forced fumble during his junior year in 2015.
- He announced on 11th January 2016 that he would forego his remaining eligibility and enter the 2016 NFL draft.
Source: @instagram.com/yolo_smith9
Professional career
- Jaylon attended a pre-draft visit with the San Francisco 49ers and the majority of NFL draft experts projected him to be a third or fourth-round pick. He was also ranked the 10th best outside linebacker prospect in the draft by DraftScout.com and was ranked the 11th best linebacker by NFL analyst Mike Mayock.
- The Dallas Cowboys selected Smith in the second round (34th overall) of the 2016 NFL Draft as the Dallas Cowboys signed Smith to a four-year on 20th May 2016, a $6.49 million contract that includes $4.42 million guaranteed and a signing bonus of $2.92 million. But, he was inactive for the entire 2016 NFL season as he recovered from his torn ACL and MCL.
- He then participated in drills for the first time in front of media since his torn ACL and MCL on 7th June 2017 and took part in practice in full pads for the first time since college on 26th July 2017, but received limited reps as the coaching staff was cautious as he became acclimated to playing in full pads.
- Head coach Jason Garrett named Jaylon the starting middle linebacker to begin the regular season, alongside outside linebackers Sean Lee and Damien Wilson.
- He later made his professional regular-season debut and the first career start in the Dallas Cowboys’ season-opener against the New York Giants and recorded seven combined tackles and forced a fumble during their 19-3 victory.
- He recorded three combined tackles and forced a fumble on his first career sack during the Cowboys’ 40-10 win at the San Francisco 49ers in Week 7 on 22nd October 2017.
- He made his first career sack on 49ers’ quarterback C. J. Beathard for a six-yard loss and also forced a fumble by Bethard that was recovered by teammate Tyrone Crawford in the third quarter whereas he finished his 2nd NFL season in 2017 with 81 combined tackles (50 solos), two pass deflections, two forced fumbles, and one sack in 16 games and six starts.
- Smith started the 2018 season alongside outside linebackers Sean Lee and Damien Wilson and on 7th October 2018, he collected 12 combined tackles (six solos), broke up a pass, and made a sack during a 19-16 loss at the Houston Texans in Week 5.
- He signed a five-year, $64 million contract extension with the Cowboys with $35.5 million guaranteed on 20th August 2019, keeping him under contract through the 2024 season. He was also elected as a first-time team captain for the 2019 Dallas Cowboys season.
- He recorded a team-high 12 tackles and half a sack on Daniel Jones in the 37-18 win in week 9 against the New York Giants on Monday Night Football and in week 10 against the Minnesota Vikings on Sunday Night Football, Smith recorded a team-high 13 tackles in the 28-24 loss.
- He recorded a team-high 8 tackles in week 17 against the Washington Redskins and intercepted a pass thrown by Case Keenum during the 47-16 win which was his first career interception in the NFL.
- As well, he led the team with 13 tackles during the 40-39 come-from-behind win in Week 2 against the Atlanta Falcons and recorded his first full sack of the season on Kirk Cousins during the 31-28 win in Week 11 against the Minnesota Vikings.
- In Week 12 against the Washington Football Team on Thanksgiving, he recorded his first interception off a pass thrown by Alex Smith and made a 43-yard return during the 41-16 loss.
- Jaylon announced earlier in the NFL preseason, on 25th May 2021 that he decided to change his number from 54 to 9 from his college days in Notre Dame per the new NFL jersey rules.
Source: @instagram.com/yolo_smith9
Awards and Achievements
- Pro Bowl (2019)
- 2× First-team All-Independent (2014, 2015)
- Consensus All-American (2015)
- College Dick Butkus Award (2015)
- High school Dick Butkus Award (2012)
- Second-team All-American (2014)
- Independent DPOY (2014)
- USA Today High School All-American (2012)
- Indiana’s Mr. Football (2012)
Who is Jaylon Smith Girlfriend?
Jaylon Smith is an unmarried football linebacker. He is currently in a loving relationship with his long-term girlfriend, Nevada Jones who is a fellow athlete. Nevada was a basketball player during her college years at Indiana University, Kokomo, a public university in Indiana. She has always been supportive of Jaylon which is why it is wonderful to see him celebrate his girlfriend and remain faithful to her. When it comes to Smith’s sexual orientation, he is straight.
Source: @liverampup
What is the Net Worth of Jaylon Smith?
Jaylon Smith has a net worth of $4 million as of 2021 whereas his exact amount of salary has not been disclosed yet. However, we can surely assume his salary is millions of dollars per year. He signed a five-year, $64 million contract extension with the Cowboys with $35.5 million guaranteed, keeping him under contract through the 2024 season. Jaylon has not done endorsement work for any brands yet. In addition, his major source of income is his football linebacker career.
How tall is Jaylon Smith?
Jaylon Smith is 6 ft 2 in (1.88 m) tall and his body weighs around 245 lb (111 kg). He has inked numerous tattoos on his body which have attracted a lot of people towards him. He has good-looking black hair and dark brown eyes color. Furthermore, Jaylon”s body build type is athletic. During the Fiesta Bowl game against Ohio State, he suffered a knee injury in the first quarter and left the game. It was confirmed that the knee was diagnosed with tears to the ACL and LCL. He underwent successful knee surgery on both ligaments on 7th January 2016.
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