Under the Radar 2014 Draft Prospects: QB Brett Smith, Wyoming

Brett Smith? Brett Smith. Who is Brett Smith? Has anyone heard of Brett Smith? I hadn't until I read a bleacherreport article written by Ryan Riddle. Brett Smith played quarterback for the Wyoming Cowboys, starting all three seasons. He went to high school in Oregon and set records, yet didn't receive any attention from local schools Oregon and Oregon State. Only two FBS schools offered him a scholarship. In the world of football and all its jargon, that 'put a chip on his shoulder'. Over three years, Smith threw for 8,829 yards and 76 touchdowns to 28 interceptions. Compare that to Teddy Bridgewater who threw for 9,817 yards, 72 touchdowns, and 24 interceptions. Yeah, yeah, Smith was playing in the Mountain West Conference, but still. Looking at numbers alone, those are good. And guess what else? Smith wasn't invited to the combine.

So there's no analyzing his combine numbers, but that's fine. If we're going to hold a lot of stock in pro days (cough, cough, Teddy), then check out Smith's (video is posted below). I obviously am not an expert at assessing a quarterback's ability, but Smith's form looks good. Prospects have time between the end of the season and the combine/pro day to work on things like that, but watching a bit of game tape of Smith shows a good throwing form then, too. 

Now let's talk numbers from his pro day. First, Smith ran a 4.51 40 yard dash. Yeah, Manziel ran a 4.68. Yes, you read that right; more than a tenth of a second faster than Manziel. He also had more than a 10' broad jump and did 18 reps of 225 lbs. Anthony Barr, most likely the second linebacker to come off the board, only did 15 reps at the combine. Brett Smith is an athlete.

Smith isn't big, about 6'2" and 205 lbs, but apparently he's been working to bulk up (cbssports.com). The biggest knocks on him are his lack of velocity on throws and the level of competition he played against. The velocity aspect he seems to have improved upon by working on his form. When he pushes off his back foot correctly, he has plenty of oomph on the ball. He doesn't have a big arm, either, but that's only when comparing him to Derek Carr and Zach Mettenberger. One source said he needs to get better in his pocket presence, but in watching a bit of game tape, I didn't think that was such an issue. Either he gets rid of the ball quickly, or his offensive line is collapsing too quickly to really do anything but get out of there.

from: reporterherald.com

Smith does force some throws occasionally, but most of the time he's hitting the receiver through a tight window. Since he's getting rid of the ball so quickly, his ball placement has to be spot on. When you look at his numbers, you can see he's doing that very well. As his 40 time shows as well, when things break down Smith is very dangerous when he takes off.

To me, Smith seems like a quarterback who would benefit greatly from a specific system. I can see him having great production in a system like the Chiefs did with Smith this last year, and Russell Wilson with the Seahawks. What do they have in common with with the Vikings? A great run game. I'm not ashamed to say it, but the Vikings simply need a game manager, someone who won't turn the ball over. We have Adrian Peterson; we don't need Peyton Manning numbers.

A few months ago Brett Smith probably would have gone undrafted. After his pro day, his draft stock has increased. I could see him going as high as the bottom of the fifth, most likely in the sixth, but probably not in the seventh. The Vikings will want to take a quarterback before the fifth or sixth round, but like I mentioned in an earlier post, this may be a good draft to take a second quarterback. Something would have to be done with Christian Ponder, but if Spielman takes Blake Bortles in the first, then someone like Logan Thomas or Brett Smith could turn out to be a smart decision. 

Last, I'd like to leave you with some video of Smith playing Air Force. Remember that play by Manziel where he looked like he was going to tuck and run but a defensive player got in his way? He jumped, ran into an offensive lineman, spun and rolled to his left and hit a receiver near the sideline for an easy touchdown run. You are more than welcome to watch this whole video, but at least check out the play starting at 2:58; you'll see why some people have compared Smith to Manziel.