June 5, 2025   4 MIN READ

‘Take The Seatbelt Off’

With Brandon Graham Retired, Nolan Smith Ready to Drive Eagles Pass Rush

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PHILADELPHIA – The injury occurred late in the second quarter. Already up big in Super Bowl LIX, Eagles edge defender Nolan Smith attempted to execute his ghost rush when he landed awkwardly.

The unnatural landing was further compounded by the crushing weight of a 300-plus pound offensive lineman bearing down on top of him. It’s easy, in hindsight, to identify the play if you pay close attention to the aftermath of the sequence that ultimately resulted in a torn triceps for Smith.

“I came down wrong and he jumped on top of me,” Smith explained this week after an OTA. “It is what it is. I don’t get mad at him for doing what he did. He’s playing the game how he’s supposed to play the game … full tilt, full speed. And that’s what I do, I play full-tilt, full speed and sometimes things happen.

“It’s about how you bounce back from it. My momma always told me, adversity builds you. It builds your character. You ask God to make you a charactable man, he’s gonna give adversity in your life so you can be that person.”

Nolan Smith getty images

GETTY IMAGES: Eagles third-year EDGE Nolan Smith is poised to produce and to lead in the aftermath of Brandon Graham’s retirement.

Smith logged 30 snaps in Super Bowl LIX, accounting for 54 percent of the total. Rookie Jalyx Hunt undertook an elevated role as a result, totaling 23 snaps and picking up a half-sack.

A tough hand to be dealt for the 24-year-old Smith, who racked up 6.5 sacks and 11 quarterback hits during the regular season and added another four sacks and five quarterback hits in the postseason.

But the Georgia product isn’t one to point fingers, hang his head or dwell on variables. Rather, Smith approached his setback with a positive mindset and unique perspective that further exemplified his budding role as a leader on Vic Fangio’s defense.

And his road to a full recovery appears to be right around the corner.

“The rehab’s good,” Smith said. “Rehab’s good. I’m in a great spot, I feel great. I’m still using my arms, still pressing. Hopefully, I’ll be striking next week. Everything’s falling in line. And everything happens for a reason.

“Coming off this – if I wasn’t in the Super Bowl, I wouldn’t have torn my triceps – so, I take that as a blessing. Football gods have a funny way of – I’ve always begged to go to a Super Bowl and what I’d do to get there. Obviously, I tore mine.”

Smith enters the 2025 season as one of the most crucial components to Fangio’s defense, fronting an oft-scrutinized group of edge rushers on a defense reliant on its young nucleus answering the bell. His four-sack tear in the postseason illustrated that Smith is merely revving up and growing increasingly more comfortable within the defense and his ascending role.

Smith enters the season no longer viewed as a wild card but as someone who will now be looked upon as a leader and temperature-setter.

It’s a stark contrast to where Smith was at this time last season, burdened with elevated expectations that accompany the status of a first-round pick while also being mindful of those on the outside already forming a line to write him off.

The pressure, already, was building, though Smith credits Brandon Graham for arming him with confidence and perspective. It’s evident, listening to Smith speak about Graham for the past two-plus seasons how much respect and admiration Smith has for his mentor. Graham, a first-round pick in 2010, had been down that same road, one paved by pessimists and detractors, albeit many moons ago.

Graham is the epitome of overcoming adversity and choosing a positive outlook on most every circumstance. Like Graham, Smith focused on continuous improvement and craft refinement, doing his best to block out the negative forces permeating from the outside.

And even with Graham no longer around to furnish the defensive line group with mentorship, accountability and levity, it was a simple, two-word message that he  left on Smith that resonated withe third-year pro. Smith has those words of wisdom written on his mirror and is constantly reminded of them every time he gets up for work.

“Be you,” he said. “And take the seatbelt off. Always.”

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

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