BillyCarpenter1

Kenny Smith Bio

Mobile, very athletic inside performer who has good movement skills and agility. Smith has quick hands and feet and he does a nice job knifing in from the inside. Kenny has good pursuit and body adjustment skills. Kenny has the foot speed to be a very explosive inside pass rusher and he gets heavy penetration from his tackle spot.

Smith has been a good special teams player, excelling at blocking kicks. Like most Alabama players, Smith needs to get bigger and stronger in the weightroom. Kenny needs to do a better job holding his ground at the point of attack on running plays. NFL teams will also want to thoroughly check out his surgically repaired knee. He did not quite play with the same intensity and all-out nature that he did as a junior. Fine performer, who has some real top flight athletic skills, but he needs to completely get over the knee injury, get stronger and play with the same intensity he did in 1999, to reach his full potential.

The coaches have been very impressed with Smith this year, He could be the biggest surprise on the roster this year.

Charles Grant

Grant had 7-sacks as a rookie last year, not too bad, considering he was on a defense that had little going for them last year. With a year under his belt, Grant figures to be even better this year.

Darren Howard

Proven starter who is a very good pass rusher and is also good at stopping the run. Howard had 8-sacks last year and is in the prime of his career.

J.T. Sullivan


Wide-framed athlete who plays with impressive quickness off the snap … Pursues until the whistle and is known as an all-out hustler … Has great hand strength, delivering a punishing jab to disengage from the blockers … Shows excellent balance and body control turning upfield … Can generate tremendous force upon impact and fights pressure continuously on the pass rush … Has that explosive short burst needed to collapse the pocket and get to the quarterback … Reacts to the plays instantly and has the strength to split double coverage.

Some feel that J.T. Sullivan will will eventually be the best tackle taken in this years draft.
Given Jim Hasletts experience on the defensive side of the ball, I don't think he drafted Sullivan with the 6th pick for nothing. Defensive line players can have a big impact in their rookie years because they don't have to worry as much about thinking and they rely more on their athletic ability. If Sullivan is the player that the coaches think he is the middle of our line will be much improved.

Overall

I'd say overall that there is a lot of talent here. There is also a lot of speed here, especially compared to last years group with Hand and Grady Jackson.

I'm sure there will be some growing pains, but given the Panthers rise from worst to near the top of the defensive standings, I think the Saints defese truely has a chance of being much, much, improved this year.

The front four's ability to generate pressure will make the whole defense's job easier.

How does everyone else see the front four doing this year??


[Edited on 6/7/2003 by BillyCarpenter1]