ESPN's Todd McShay released his latest 2016 NFL mock draft on Wednesday, and in it, he sends Notre Dame junior linebacker Jaylon Smith to the Buffalo Bills with the No. 19 overall pick.
Were it not for his tearing the ACL and LCL in his knee in the Fiesta Bowl on New Year's Day, Smith likely would not be in the conversation for falling out of the Top 10 - and he still might not. The extremely athletic, 6'3", 240-pound Smith finished his college career at Notre Dame with 284 tackles, 23.5 tackles for a loss, 4.5 sacks, 10 defended passes, and three fumble recoveries in 38 career games.
Smith is expected to make a full recovery from his injury; the only question remaining is whether or not he'll be ready in time for his first NFL training camp. Short of that one factor, however, Smith is not expected to slide very far in the first round this spring.
In Buffalo, Smith would immediately and easily become the team's most talented linebacker, sliding in next to Preston Brown as an every-down starter as, presumably, the replacement for pending free agent Nigel Bradham, who may not be back.