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Cam Smith is a Top Corner. Is He Worthy of the Commanders’ Top Pick?

Hogs Haven takes a look at 2023 NFL Draft prospects that could contribute to the Commanders

By dg28
/ new
Clemson v South Carolina Photo by Jacob Kupferman/Getty Images

Cam Smith, CB

School: South Carolina | Conference: SEC

College Experience: RS Junior | Age: 23

Height / Weight: 6’ / 188 lbs

Projected Draft Status: 1st Round

Player Comparison: Marshon Lattimore

College Statistics

Defense & Fumbles Table
Tackles Def Int Fumbles
Year School Conf Class Pos G Solo Ast Tot Loss Sk Int Yds Avg TD PD FR Yds TD FF
2019 South Carolina SEC FR DB 2 5 2 7 0.0 0.0 0 0 0 0 0 0
2020 South Carolina SEC FR DB 8 10 6 16 0.0 0.0 2 0 0.0 0 2 0 0
*2021 South Carolina SEC SO DB 11 31 10 41 2.5 0.0 3 10 3.3 0 11 0 1
*2022 South Carolina SEC JR DB 11 23 4 27 1.0 0.0 1 0 0.0 0 5 0 0 0 0
Career South Carolina 69 22 91 3.5 0.0 6 10 1.7 0 18 0 0 0 1
Provided by CFB at Sports Reference: View Original Table
Generated 2/15/2023.

Player Overview

Cam Smith ended his high school career as the second-best prospect in South Carolina. Smith follows a long line of great man corners for the Gamecocks. He replaced Jaycee Horn as their top corner and models his game after Stephon Gilmore. It’s evident in his confident and aggressive demeanor out on the island. After Horn left for he NFL, Smith stepped up in his redshirt sophomore seasons and became a dominant defender. He had highs in tackles, interceptions, and pass deflections and earned a reputation as a shutdown corner. This past season, he earned all-SEC second-team honors.

Strengths

  • Quick feet and fluid hips, changes direction with ease
  • Good awareness in both zone and man coverages
  • Competitive and physical at the point of catch with ball skills
  • High effort player; often chases down plays opposite his side of the field

Weaknesses

  • Can be too physical at times, leading to penalties
  • Occasionally beat by double moves
  • Leaves his feet more than I’d like to make tackles
  • Can struggle getting off blocks

Let’s see his work

How he fits on the Commanders

There is talent at cornerback for the Commanders, but Kendall Fuller is entering the last year of his contract and Benjamin St-Juste has struggled to stay healthy for a full season. Smith has the skills to be a very good man cover corner on the boundary, but given his awareness and vision, he should be just as good in a zone scheme. I think many of his weaknesses can be minimized with coaching. This is a very talented draft at cornerback where the combine and pro days will go a long way to establishing the draft order. A good showing before the draft could firmly plant Smith in the top ten. If he is available, he should definitely be in the conversation with the 16th pick.

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