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NFL: SAINTS: Leading by example

/noticias.info/ Defensive end Will Smith prefers to let his deeds speak for him as a pass rusher and run stopper as one of the leaders of the Saints defensive line.

Michael C. Hebert
"I feel that I am a leader, but at the same time, I'm not the vocal leader, I'm just the guy who tries to show by example," Smith said about his role. "I think leaders don't make themselves, people make leaders. If the team chooses me to be a leader, or any of the rest of the guys as a leader, that's how you become one."

The third-year pro out of Ohio State has not-so-quietly become a force on the Saints defensive line. A player who can rush the edges of the offensive line, get his hands on the quarterback and sometimes separate man from football, Smith has posted impressive numbers in his first two seasons.

Smith was drafted by the Saints in the first round (18th overall) of the 2004 NFL Draft and made an immediate impact in his rookie season.

He posted 59 tackles (41 solo), 7.5 sacks, five forced fumbles and one fumble recovery as he played in all 16 games (four starts -- including the first two games of the season). He had six or more tackles in three games and a sack in seven different contests on the way to All-Rookie honors by Pro Football Weekly.

Last season, he was not a full-time starter until the final six games of the season as he played in all 16 games and started nine contests. He led the team with a career-high 8.5 sacks, made 85 total tackles, two forced fumbles, a fumble recovery and six pass defenses.

Seven times in his first two seasons, Smith has forced a fumble (including in a club-record five consecutive games over the final four games of 2004 and the 2005 opener) and he says it is equal parts technique and hard work.

"For one, ends have a lot of opportunities because when you look back quarterbacks lead the league in fumbles," Smith said. "The right ends are coming from the back side so we hit their arms -- that's what we practice every day -- to knock the ball out as we are hitting them, which will cause them to fumble the ball."

Running backs who Smith is trying to run down from behind are not immune, either.

"In the back-side pursuit, when the running back is going and you are coming from behind him, we are taught to tackle by bringing one arm (around the ballcarrier) and using the other arm to knock out the ball. If you miss the ball, you are going to tackle him regardless, but you want to get that ball out."

Continual practice and help from his friends on the defensive unit also help to create turnover chances.

"It's a matter of following your routine and that every time you are trying to tackle somebody, you are trying to go for the ball," Smith said. "If there is a gang of people on one guy and he is still moving forward, somebody has to try to reach for the ball and pull it out. A running back can't run and fight off a bunch of defenders at the same time."

A NFL defensive end must be both a run-stopper and a pass-rusher and balancing the skills are critical to a team's success.

"You have to play with good leverage," Smith said about playing the run. "A lot of people say you have to be big and strong. I think you have to play with good leverage and get inside the chest of the guy and read off the (offensive) lineman and read what type of block he is trying to give you."

DE Will Smith has 16 sacks in his first two NFL seasons
DE Will Smith has 16 sacks in his first two NFL seasons
Michael C. Hebert
He is an accomplished pass rusher with a combined 16 sacks in his first two seasons. He and fellow end Charles Grant are charged with cornering the quarterback and not allowing him an escape route.

"Charles and I are the top two pass rushers on the team and we have to work at it, try to stay consistent, get up the field, get pressure and cause more turnovers," he said.

"I think I'm solid on both ends, I can stop the run and pass rush," he continued. "I want to be as balanced as I can be, because last season in a lot of cases we were down (on the scoreboard) and teams had no choice but to run the ball on us. We had to tighten down and we had to focus on our run blocking and that helped me out a lot."

In either case, Smith has to take on opposing offensive tackles, a much different assignment in the NFL than it was in college.

"In college, you scheme more, the tackles protect the quarterback a little more and they are young and playing hard," he said. "In the NFL, the difference is that the offensive linemen are on their own, they're much smarter and much stronger. Most of the good tackles are older guys. Being a young guy, I'm going up against a guy who has seen every single pass rush known to man and have an advantage because of their experience."

Smith is working constantly to improve his game by putting time in film study.

"I am focused on becoming a better student of the game," he said. "I am watching a lot of film, studying teams and other pass rushers. I want to learn as much as possible from other people. I want to learn different type of styles so that when I see a tackle sending me a certain way, I know how to alter my pass rush in order to beat him."

Smith and the remainder of the defensive line have a new position coach in 2006 as Marion Hobby tutors the group.

"He brings a sense of urgency on the defensive line," Smith said. "We are always out there early doing drills and he constantly has us going and have us working on the littlest things because he knows we are all great athletes, so we won't beat ourselves and won't take the wrong step -- all of the little things will be taken care of and we can just go out and play football. He wants us to be the best all of the time."

Hobby's early coaching experience as strength and conditioning coach at the University of Tennessee and his time in the NFL as a player has helped the line get ready in a demanding position.

"He has us in a type of conditioning and a type of endurance we will need to finish a game, so that's why he works us so hard to get us ready for the upcoming season," Smith said. "So when we get into the fourth quarter, we have enough endurance and strength to last the whole game." notas_de_prensa_archivo