Trey Smith among non first round rookies who can make an impact

When he fell all the way to the sixth round in the 2021 NFL Draft, Trey Smith was immediately viewed as a steal. The 6-foot-6, 330-pound right guard had blood clots that plummeted his draft stock in the eyes of many NFL teams.

NFL.com’s Gil Brandt is one of many people that believe Smith will make an instant impact for the Kansas City Chiefs offensive line.

Here is an excerpt from Brandt’s write-up below on Trey Smith, whom he ranks as the fifth-best non first round rookie that can make an impact:

“Once considered one of the top prospects in the 2021 draft class, Smith slipped to the sixth round, where the Chiefs — who confidently selected Smith despite the issue he had with blood clots in college — were able to scoop him up. Now he’s working with the first-team offense at right guard, thanks to injuries to Kyle Long and Laurent Duvernay-Tardif. Smith has a chance to establish himself (along with rookie center Creed Humphrey and youngster Lucas Niang) as a key protector of quarterback Patrick Mahomes for years to come.”

Turning Heads in Fall Camp

Smith has been turning heads early and often in Chiefs fall camp, earning reps with the first-team offensive line unit. They currently have him slotted at the right guard position.

Senior Bowl Standout

Trey Smith dominated the Senior Bowl and was one of the best offensive lineman in the entire week of practice. He demonstrated his remarkable blend of size, balance, footwork, and hands for the entire week in Mobile. Few, if any defensive linemen could get past Smith during Senior Bowl week.

Here’s a clip of Smith going up against Carlos “Boogie” Basham of Wake Forest.

Tennessee OL Trey Smith vs Wake Forest DL Carlos Basham.#Seniorbowl pic.twitter.com/BEh2NtME4n

— Chase Goodbread (@ChaseGoodbread) January 30, 2021

Senior Bowl Director Jim Nagy said the following about Trey Smith on Twitter: “Former 5-star missed time as a sophomore with blood clots in his lungs and bounced back with a strong junior season. (Tennessee’s) staff can’t say enough good things about him.”

Trey Smith Tennessee Volunteers Career

Trey Smith finished his career as one of the best offensive lineman ever to suit up in Knoxville. Blessed with tremendous footwork and balance for a player his size, Smith allowed only one sack in his final two seasons at Tennessee.

He was the first Volunteer offensive lineman to be named first- or second-team All-America by any media outlet since Anthony Parker in 2007. The Jackson native was named first team All-SEC twice in his Tennessee career and earned second team All-America honors his senior year. Smith was the first true freshman to start at left tackle for Tennessee in over 30 years, en route to Freshman All-America honors. He saw time in over 2,500 snaps in his incredibly dominant Volunteer career.

High School Career

Smith, like Nagy noted above, was a former five-star recruit coming out of Jackson, Tennessee. He played for University School in Jackson and was rated as the fifth-overall player in the nation.