January 14, 2025   5 MIN READ

On The Come-Up

Second-Year EDGE's 2 Sacks Vs. Packers Signal Development

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PHILADELPHIA – Fresh off his third postseason win as Philadelphia Eagles head coach, Nick Sirianni stood before his team in a victorious postgame locker room, game ball in hand.

As Sirianni began his impassioned deliverance, a look of pride came over him as he continued on about a player he’d long been championing.

Sirianni prefaced his praise by saying, “I love this f—ing guy!,” adding, “He’s just a nasty, violent football player.”

Sirianni then floated the game ball into the waiting hands of second-year pass-rusher Nolan Smith, who’d just feasted in the team’s 22-10 wild card win over the Green Bay Packers.

In the opening round, Smith made perhaps the biggest difference, racking up a pair of sacks, exhibiting to the national audience what had been months in the making.

“Man, it’s just growth,” he said. “Growth mindset. I could always get better. It’s some things that I even would have wished I did better tonight. But it’s a growth mindset.”

Nolan Smith getty images

GETTY IMAGES: Eagles EDGE Nolan Smith. who had two sacks vs. Green Bay in the wild card game, is emerging into a force.

Not typically one to soak up the spotlight, Smith, who added seven tackles (two for loss) and two quarterback hits, gave the nod to seemingly everyone else for empowering his playoff showcase.

Smith credited his defensive tackles for his sacks, namely fourth-year pro Milton Williams, citing their string of quality rushes and setting things up with games.

He even went as far as to offer half his playoff check to Williams for his efforts – a joke, for sure.

Another name Smith mentioned frequently was defensive end/outside linebackers coach Jeremiah Washburn, whom Smith works with before and aftsd practice, ensuring that he feels comfortable while also brushing up on his details leading into games.

Smith on numerous occasions during his postgame availability gushed about Washburn’s impact on his game, citing the coach’s knowledge of offensive tackles and understanding the intricacies and nuances of the position.

For Smith, who has personified Sirianni’s non-negotiable hallmarks of physicality and relentless effort to the football, his performance served as a reminder the difference one year can make in the psyche and development of a young player.

Smith’s ascent has come so rapidly, it’s hard to believe that just months ago the 23-year old had faced doubts and heavy degree of scrutiny from pockets of detractors who had for some reason believed they’d seen enough to reach a definitive conclusion on his career.

Many, in fact, had written him off.

Few players entered 2024 under more skepticism than Smith, who’d played sparingly as a rookie despite his first-round status.

For perspective, Smith accounted for just 16 percent of the defensive snaps last season, his lone sack coming in a Week 7 thrashing of the Miami Dolphins.

His size and play strength was often called into question, casting doubt about his long-term viability and suggesting the team had whiffed on its selection.

But while the skeptics seemed to grow louder approaching the season-opener in Sao Paulo, Brazil, the internal confidence at team headquarters never wavered.

After some impressive showcases in the second half of the season, and after showing emerging-star potential in his first playoff win, the Savannah, Ga. native is changing the narrative about him.

Sirianni added his own perspective to the unlocking of Smith’s acumen.

“Time and patience and getting better every day,” Sirianni said Monday. “We live in such a world where it’s like instant gratification. Anything worthwhile is going to take time.

“That’s development of players, that’s development of coaches, that’s everything. Nolan is the example of that.”

In what now feels like a distant memory, Smith was cagey when asked during the dog days of training camp about his sack goal.

He did, however, reveal that he reads that number – written with an Expo marker – on his mirror each morning when he brushes his teeth.

And while his goals weren’t known by most everyone else, Smith confided in wide receiver A.J. Brown, citing a connection that stemmed from their love of cars.

Whatever the number was, Smith will probably need to strive for loftier aspirations next season, as he’s accumulated 8.5 sacks this season, playoffs included.

The drastic transformation won’t come much of a surprise inside the building, but Smith tried to pinpoint exactly what clicked.

“It’s just growth,” he said. “I’ll tell you, man, sometimes it goes up, sometimes it goes down. It ebbs and flows, but I’m just trying to grow every day.”

The nastiness and violent tendencies that Sirianni spoke about after the game is a sentiment commonly shared by the Eagles’ head coach, who never misses an opportunity to commend Smith for following his core values, leading by example and exuding urgency and tenacity with each rush.

It’s a mentality that’s been instilled in Smith since an early age.  If you watch closely, you’ll see his persistence and relentlessness each play.

Like a throwback to another era, Smith doesn’t take the game for granted, and prides himself on leaving everything on the field.

“I’m supposed to be on the port,” he said. “I’m supposed to be on the graveyard shift right now, working and anchoring down boats and latches and stuff. So, I go out there and I just wanna make my momma proud and make the 10 guys next to me proud.

“When they turn on the film, they know [No.] 3 gonna fly around to the ball. I just try to do that every day, even at practice. I just attest to my guys. We do that every day.”

– Andrew DiCecco (@AndrewDiCecco) is a Staff Reporter/Content Producer for InsideTheBirds.com.

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