Did Brandon Smith make a mistake by declaring for NFL Draft?

Every year over one thousand football players enter their name into the NFL Draft process to try and take their college football dreams to the next level. Yet, a growing number of those players are underclassmen, like Penn State linebacker Brandon Smith, who have given up years of eligibility to head to the NFL early. With the addition of COVID-19 exemptions, this muddied process has gotten even murkier. There is constant debate about whether or not a player should return for their final year of eligibility and the merits of the decision to go pro. It’s a fascinating, multi-layered decision with no apparent or correct answer but many opinions. It’s also an area on which I have changed my stance over the years. As a film evaluator, my initial view is usually for players to stay in school and hone their craft to increase their draft stock. Now, I am much less sure of the right decision. We’ll go through some common thoughts that I’ve read over the years about the decision to go pro early. While we're using Brand Smith as an example for this discussion, it's a discussion about all early enrollees.