Malcolm Xavier Smith (born July 5, 1989) is an American former professional football player who was a linebacker in the National Football League (NFL). He played college football for the USC Trojans and was selected by the Seattle Seahawks in the seventh round of the 2011 NFL draft. Smith was named the Most Valuable Player of Super Bowl XLVIII in the Seahawks' victory over the Denver Broncos. He also played for the Oakland Raiders, San Francisco 49ers, Jacksonville Jaguars, Dallas Cowboys, and Cleveland Browns.
Early life Smith attended William Howard Taft High School, where he was a letterman in football and track. In football, Smith was named to the Student Sports Sophomore All-American and Cal-Hi Sports All-State first-team as a sophomore when he had 800-plus yards of total offense and eight touchdowns, plus two interceptions, as Taft won the L.A. City title. As a junior in 2005, Smith made Cal-Hi Sports All-State Underclass first-team, All-L.A. City first-team and Los Angeles Daily News All-Area first-team while making 41 tackles, two sacks, and a fumble recovery, plus running for 639 yards on 73 carries (8.8 avg.) with 10 touchdowns and catching 27 passes for 411 yards (15.2 avg.) with seven scores as Taft was the L.A. City runner-up. As a senior in 2006, he had 31 tackles, 10 sacks, and four fumble recoveries at linebacker and ran for 919 yards on 118 carries with 15 touchdowns as a running back, despite missing the first half of the season with a leg injury.
Also a standout track athlete, Smith competed as a sprinter for the Taft High track & field team. He qualified for the Los Angeles City Section T&F Championships in the 100m and 200m dashes. He recorded a personal-best time of 10.8 seconds in the 100-meter dash as a junior, and got a PR of 22.39 seconds in the 200-meter dash as a senior. Smith also ran the 40-yard dash in 4.45 seconds.
Smith received scholarship offers for football from Notre Dame, California, Arizona, Michigan, and Penn State.
College career
Smith enrolled at the University of Southern California (USC) in order to play college football for the USC Trojans football team. As a true freshman in 2007, Smith played in all 13 games as a backup linebacker and special teams player. He finished the year with six tackles and a forced fumble.
As a sophomore in 2008 he again spent time as a backup and on special teams. He finished the season with 18 tackles in 13 games. In the 2009 game against cross-town rival UCLA Bruins, Smith led the Trojan defense for a 28–7 win. Smith returned the first UCLA interception 62 yards for a touchdown in the first quarter. For his play, Smith was awarded the "Legend Nike Game Ball" for the National Defensive Player of the Week.
Professional career Pre-draft Smith entered the 2011 NFL Draft, but did not receive an invitation to perform at the NFL Scouting Combine in Indianapolis, Indiana. On March 30, 2011, Smith attended USC's pro day and performed all of the combine and positional drills for team representatives and scouts. He also attended private meetings with the Seattle Seahawks and Chicago Bears. Smith was projected to be a sixth or seventh round pick by NFL draft experts and scouts. At the conclusion of the pre-draft process, Smith was ranked as the 29th best outside linebacker prospect in the draft by DraftScout.com and was ranked the 37th best outside linebacker by Scouts Inc.
Seattle Seahawks 2011 season Smith was selected by the Seattle Seahawks in the seventh round (242nd overall) of the 2011 NFL draft. He was the 30th linebacker drafted in 2011 and was reunited with head coach Pete Carroll. Carroll was Smith's head coach at USC from 2007 to 2009.
On July 28, 2011, the Seahawks signed Smith to a four-year, $2.08 million contract that includes a signing bonus of $45,900. Throughout training camp, Smith competed to be a backup outside linebacker against K. J. Wright, Matt McCoy, and David Vobora. Head coach Pete Carroll named Smith the backup weakside linebacker to start the regular season, behind Leroy Hill.
He made his professional regular season debut in the Seattle Seahawks' season-opener against the San Francisco 49ers and made two combined tackles in their 33–17 loss. Smith made his first career regular season tackle on Ted Ginn Jr. and stopped him for a ten-yard loss during a punt return in the second quarter. On November 13, 2011, Smith collected a season-high four solo tackles, forced a fumble, and made his first career sack during a 22–17 victory against the Baltimore Ravens. Smith forced a fumble by David Reed that was recovered by teammate Atari Bigby and led to a last second field goal before the end of the second quarter. He also sacked Ravens' quarterback Joe Flacco for an eight-yard loss in the fourth quarter. Smith was inactive for the last two games of the regular season (Weeks 16–17). He finished his rookie season in 2011 with 16 combined tackles (10 solo), a forced fumble, and a sack in 12 games and no starts.
2012 season During training camp, Smith competed for a roster spot as a backup outside linebacker against Jameson Konz, Allen Bradford, Heath Farwell, Mike Morgan, and Kyle Knox. Defensive coordinator Gus Bradley retained Smith as a backup outside linebacker, behind Leroy Hill and K. J. Wright, to begin the regular season. On December 2, 2012, Smith made his first career start and replaced Leroy Hill who was inactive due to an ankle injury. He finished the Seahawks' 23–17 win against the Chicago Bears with two solo tackles. In Week 16, he collected a season-high five combined tackles during a 42–13 victory against the San Francisco 49ers. Smith completed the 2012 season with 22 combined tackles (12 solo) and two pass deflections in 16 games and three starts. Smith was limited to 166 defensive snaps (16%), but played 258 snaps on special teams (60%). Smith earned an overall grade of 77.0 from Pro Football Focus in 2012.
The Seattle Seahawks finished second in the NFC West with an 11–5 record and earned a wildcard berth. On January 6, 2013, Smith appeared in his first career playoff game and recorded three solo tackles during the Seahawks' 24–14 win against the Washington Redskins in the NFC Wildcard Game. The following week, he made three solo tackles as the Seahawks lost the NFC Divisional Round 30–28 against the Atlanta Falcons.
2013 season Smith entered training camp slated as the starting weakside linebacker after the departure of Leroy Hill. Smith received competition from Korey Toomer, Bruce Irvin, Mike Morgan, and Allen Bradford. Head coach Pete Carroll officially named Smith and K. J. Wright the starting outside linebackers to start the season, along with middle linebacker Bobby Wagner.
Smith started in the Seattle Seahawks' season-opener against the Carolina Panthers and made two solo tackles in their 12–7 victory. Smith was sidelined for the Seahawks' Week 3 victory against the Jacksonville Jaguars due to a hamstring injury. On October 17, 2013, Smith collected a season-high nine combined tackles, a pass deflection, and a sack during a 34–22 win at the Arizona Cardinals in Week 7. The following week, Smith was surpassed on the depth chart by Bruce Irvin who was named the starting strongside linebacker in his place. Smith became the starting weakside linebacker in Week 15 after K. J. Wright sustained a fractured foot and was sidelined for the last three games of the regular season. On December 22, 2013, Smith recorded eight combined tackles, a pass deflection, and made his first career interception during a 17–10 loss to the Arizona Cardinals in Week 16. Smith intercepted a pass attempt by Cardinals' quarterback Carson Palmer, that was originally intended for running back Andre Ellington, and returned it for a 32-yard gain in the second quarter. In Week 17, Smith made five combined tackles, a pass deflection, and returned an interception for his first career touchdown in a 27–9 win against the St. Louis Rams. He intercepted a pass by Kellen Clemens, that was originally thrown to tight end Lance Kendricks, and returned it for a 37-yard touchdown in the first quarter. Smith finished the 2013 season with 54 combined tackles (34 solo), four passes defensed, a forced fumble, one sack, 2 interceptions, and a touchdown in 15 games and eight starts. Smith completed the season with 480 defensive snaps (46%) and 228 snaps on special teams (51%). Pro Football Focus gave Smith an overall grade of 83.0 in 2013. His grade ranked 16th among the 56th qualifying linebackers in the league.
The Seahawks won the NFC West with a 13–3 record and earned a first-round bye and home-field advantage throughout the playoffs. On January 11, 2014, Smith started in his first career playoff game and made nine combined tackles during a 23–15 victory against the New Orleans Saints in the NFC Divisional Round. On January 19, 2014, Smith made four combined tackles, a pass deflection, and made an interception to seal the Seahawks' 23–17 victory against the San Francisco 49ers in the NFC Championship Game. He intercepted a pass by quarterback Colin Kaepernick, that was intended for wide receiver Michael Crabtree. The pass was deflected by Richard Sherman and caught in the endzone for a touchback by Smith with the Seahawks up by six points with 30 seconds remaining.
On February 2, 2014, Smith recorded 10 combined tackles (six solo), deflected a pass, recovered a fumble, and returned an interception for a touchdown in the Seahawks' 43–8 victory over the Denver Broncos in Super Bowl XLVIII. Smith intercepted a pass by quarterback Peyton Manning, that was intended for running back Knowshon Moreno, and returned it for a 69-yard touchdown in the second quarter. Smith also recovered a fumble by wide receiver Demaryius Thomas in the third quarter after it was forced by teammate Byron Maxwell. His performance earned him the Super Bowl MVP award, making him the first defensive player to win the award since Dexter Jackson in Super Bowl XXXVII. Smith is one of nine defensive players to win Super Bowl MVP honors.
2014 season Smith returned to a reserve role in 2014 after the return of K. J. Wright from injury. Defensive coordinator Dan Quinn opted to retain Bruce Irvin, K. J. Wright, and Bobby Wagner as the starting linebacker trio to start the regular season. In Week 7, Smith earned his first start of the season after Bobby Wagner was inactive for five games (Weeks 7–11) due to a turf toe injury. He finished the Seahawks' 28–26 loss at the St. Louis Rams with a season-high ten solo tackles. Smith was inactive for two games (Weeks 9–10) due to a groin injury. Smith finished the 2014 season with 38 combined tackles (28 solo), two forced fumbles, and a pass deflection in 14 games and five starts. Smith played predominantly on special teams and finished the season with 255 snaps (59%) on special teams and 273 snaps (27%) on defense. Pro Football Focus gave Smith an overall grade of 37.3, which marked the lowest grade of his career.
The Seahawks finished first in the NFC West with a 12–4 record and secured a playoff berth. On January 18, 2015, the Seahawks played the Green Bay Packers during the NFC Championship Game after defeating the Carolina Panthers 31–17 in the NFC Divisional Round. Smith made two combined tackles as Seattle defeated the Packers 28–22 in overtime. On February 1, 2015, Smith appeared in Super Bowl XLIX, but was held without a stat as the New England Patriots defeated the Seattle Seahawks 28–24.
Oakland Raiders 2015 season On March 10, 2015, the Oakland Raiders signed Smith to a two-year, $7 million contract with $3.75 million guaranteed and a signing bonus of $2 million. Smith reunited with defensive coordinator Ken Norton Jr., who was his linebackers coach from 2007–2009 at USC and from 2010–2014 with the Seattle Seahawks.