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Oakland Raiders 2018 NFL Mock Draft: Wild Card Weekend

By John Buhler

PASADENA, CA - JANUARY 01: Quarterback Baker Mayfield No. 6 of the Oklahoma Sooners looks to avoid a sack by linebacker Roquan Smith No. 3 of the Georgia Bulldogs in the second half in the 2018 College Football Playoff Semifinal at the Rose Bowl Game presented by Northwestern Mutual at the Rose Bowl on January 1, 2018 in Pasadena, California. (Photo by Harry How/Getty Images)
PASADENA, CA - JANUARY 01: Quarterback Baker Mayfield No. 6 of the Oklahoma Sooners looks to avoid a sack by linebacker Roquan Smith No. 3 of the Georgia Bulldogs in the second half in the 2018 College Football Playoff Semifinal at the Rose Bowl Game presented by Northwestern Mutual at the Rose Bowl on January 1, 2018 in Pasadena, California. (Photo by Harry How/Getty Images) /
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Though he still has at least one more college football game to play on Monday night, the best pro prospect that the SEC and Rose Bowl Champion Georgia Bulldogs have to offer is inside linebacker Roquan Smith. He could and probably will declare after his true junior year in Athens. This guy is a tackling machine and could be a Luke Kuechly type of middle linebacker at the next level.

Smith was a unanimous All-American, the Dick Butkus Award winner and the SEC Defensive Player of the Year. In his outstanding junior year up to this point, Smith has 124 total tackles (76 solo, 48 assists), 11.5 tackles for a loss of yardage, 5.5 quarterback sacks, two passes defended, two fumble recoveries and a forced fumble.

Smith has played in 37 career games with Georgia. He has registered 239 career tackles (137 solo, 102 assists), 18.0 tackles for a loss of yardage, 5.5 quarterback sacks, three passes defended, three forced fumbles and three fumble recoveries. He has gotten better every season playing for head coach Kirby Smart in Mel Tucker‘s defense. If Smith wants to go pro after Monday night’s national championship game, he’s ready.

At 6-foot-1, 225 pounds, Smith may need to put on a few pounds to play at the next level in a traditional defense. However, he could be the ideal size of the new prototype at the linebacker position. His junior year at Georgia reminds us of Kuechly’s junior year at Boston College. If the Raiders are getting a Deion Jones type of linebacker out of Smith at No. 10, then he’s totally worth the top-10 selection.

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