Wednesday, April 18, 2001

Colts should be smitten with Smoot

Mississippi State corner would be best fit for Indianapolis

By Andy Hanacek, Associate editor

The obvious answer is that the Colts need a ton of help on defense. They thought they addressed their problems at middle linebacker in the 2000 draft by selecting Rob Morris. But Morris blew out his knee in Week Eight, and the Colts were left back where they started. (He’s reportedly doing well in his comeback.) They got some decent play up front, but their problems were clearly in the secondary. They recently cut veteran CB Tyrone Poole, whose season was so disappointing that he didn’t even play the last few games of 2000.

So we’ve narrowed it down to the fact that they need a play-making cornerback in this weekend’s draft. Most people knew that. At No. 22 overall in the first round, the Colts are sitting pretty. PFW’s draft expert, Joel Buchsbaum, in his latest player printout (regardless of position), has Ohio State’s Nate Clements ranked as the top cornerback. After Clements, the top five shakes down as such: Syracuse’s Will Allen, Wisconsin’s Jamar Fletcher, Mississippi State’s Fred Smoot and Minnesota’s Willie Middlebrooks. Buchsbaum has Clements ranked 16^th overall, regardless of position — right in the Colts’ neck of the draft woods.

So who should the Colts take? Obviously, they’ll have quite the decision to make. So I’ll help them: Take Fred Smoot.

Here’s why. Sure Smoot is on the small side for a cornerback (5-11¹/4, 172 pounds), but Clements, Allen and Fletcher aren’t much bigger. Smoot is quick, has 4.44 40-speed and proved he can play different coverages in the Senior Bowl.

But there’s one aspect of Smoot’s game that should appeal to the Colts and make them want to draft him: his mouth. When I first heard Smoot was a big-time trash-talker, I immediately thought this guy was a jerk. But then I read more, and I’ve come to like his style based on what I’ve read.

Smoot is not the kind of trash-talker that does it because he’s an idiot with an enormous ego. He does it just to get in his opponents’ heads and get them off their game. In college, Smoot looked up opposing receivers’ bios in the teams’ media guides in order to use it against them as trash-talking material during the game. Another positive about Smoot is that he doesn’t put off his teammates with his confidence and mouth.

A lot of times, you’ll see a trash-talker who has a lot of confidence (which is why he trash-talks) develop an ego problem, which leads to his teammates not liking him. But from all indications, Smoot’s teammates at Mississippi State really liked him.

So Smoot’s trash-talking isn’t really a problem. In fact, it’s just what the Colts need, especially on defense.

The Colts need a playmaker in the secondary who can incite some kind of concern from opponents. Smoot has the tools to be great, and the personality to create that fear.

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