Was it a Reach?: Arian Smith

Was it a Reach

Many years ago, I created Why the Slide and Why Undrafted in response to questions about why certain well-known prospects were selected lower or not drafted at all in the NFL Draft. This year, I thought to expand to see if a player was a reach. The answer to whether a player was a reach is as simple as the player was valued at that spot by the team that drafted him. However, other teams may not agree with that grade, so I thought I would check if certain players were actual reaches in the NFL Draft.

For these articles, I reach out to sources with NFL teams to find out where their teams valued this player. The positive response to “Why Undrafted” and questions from readers about why prospects were drafted lower than the media’s expectations led us to create the parallel series “Why the Slide?” and now, “Was it a Reach?”

Both series are back this year. Feel free to email me requests for Why the Slide? and Why Undrafted? at [email protected]. I can’t promise to get to all of them, but I will do my best and definitely will respond to the email.

As I stated above, readers send requests on players, and Arian Smith was one of them for this series. The speedster Smith flashed for Georgia in 2024 with 48 catches for 817 yards and four touchdowns. After the season, he showed elite speed at the NFL Scouting Combine of 4.36 seconds. While some in the media felt Smith could be a sleeper steal, NFL teams were giving him grades on the final day of the draft.

In speaking to sources at other teams, they felt Smith was a slight reach in the fourth round. Those teams had Smith rated lower on day three, but they did have him as a day-three pick. Sources from around the league said dropped passes and terrible hands were the big detriment to Smith’s grade.

The New York Jets selected Smith in the fourth round, a mixed landing spot. On the positive side, the Jets need receivers to step up and emerge as playmakers. Under new head coach Aaron Glenn, it will be a wide-open competition for playing time. Garrett Wilson is the only veteran who is a near lock to be a starter, and the Jets did not draft a receiver ahead of him or make a serious commitment to a veteran starter in free agency. Thus, Smith has a great opportunity to earn playing time immediately. On the negative side, with Justin Fields at quarterback, New York does not have a proven pocket passer to get the ball consistently and accurately to receivers. Smith has a good opportunity in New York, but he is going to have to improve his hands dramatically, as receivers who are prone to dropping the ball struggle to earn playing time and stick in the NFL.