Jaylon Smith’s nightmare is over.
After watching his football life thrown into chaos with a career-altering knee injury, Smith came off the board after just two picks in the second round, selected by the Dallas Cowboys with the 34th pick. His selection ended the most challenging months of Smith’s young life, and come after cashing in a significant tax-free, loss-of-value insurance policy that’ll end up being just shy of a million dollars.
No, it’s not top-five money like Smith could’ve expected if he didn’t get hurt. But Smith isn’t expected to play in 2016.
And while there was a pre-draft fascination that focused on the doom and gloom more than the time-consuming recovery, it’s worth pointing out that Dallas’ medical evaluation comes from the source—literally. After all, it was the Cowboys team doctor, Dr. Dan Cooper, who performed the surgery to repair Smith’s knee.
"How about those @dallascowboys?"
— NFL (@NFL) April 29, 2016
Jaylon Smith. Heading to Big D. What a pick. #NFLDraft https://t.co/0KGKampcTx
Smith joins Ezekiel Elliott with the Cowboys, arguably the two best position players in the draft. While he might not be available in 2016, Smith will be under the supervision of the Cowboys’ medical staff, paid a seven-figure salary to get healthy with the hopes that he’ll be back to his All-American self sooner than later, especially as the nerve in his knee returns to full functionality.
Newest Cowboy @TheJaylonSmith joins @TheDraftShow
— Dallas Cowboys (@dallascowboys) April 30, 2016
LIVE Draft Coverage: https://t.co/sTNYU8CutVhttps://t.co/IlTLoje1pZ
JAYLON SMITH
— Notre Dame Football (@NDFootball) April 29, 2016
No explanation necessary.#NFLDraft #NDinTheNFL pic.twitter.com/JEDUifRdR6