NFL Nation

          Saints' greatest era not possible without underrated pillar Will Smith

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          Former Saints DE Will Smith shot, killed (1:58)

          NEW ORLEANS -- The greatest era in New Orleans Saints history was defined by offense, by the glamour guys, by Drew Brees and Sean Payton and Reggie Bush.

          But none of it happens without Will Smith.

          None of it happens without the underrated pillar of that Saints team from 2006 to 2012, who is now tragically gone too soon at age 34. He was shot and killed after a traffic incident late Saturday night in New Orleans.

          The Saints probably don’t win their first Super Bowl in 2009 without Smith’s career-high 13 sacks that year. And they sure as heck don’t reach their first NFC Championship Game in 2006, just one year removed from the devastation of Hurricane Katrina and a 3-13 season.

          Smith made the Pro Bowl during that 2006 season with 10.5 sacks. Payton, in his first season as coach, counted on Smith as a leader on and off the field to help that transition from one era to the next.

          A first-round draft pick out of Ohio State in 2004, Smith was an enforcer both on and off the field for the Saints. He was the kind of guy who spoke softly but carried a big stick. And Payton always valued Smith for embracing the new regime and becoming such a big part of it.

          Just last month, our media panel elected Smith into the Saints Hall of Fame in his first year of eligibility -- one of the easiest selections in my years on the committee. Sadly, he won’t be around to receive the honor he so strongly deserved.

          Smith, who ranks fourth in Saints history with 67.5 career sacks, also had been considering a possible future as a coaching assistant with the Saints.

          And most tragic of all, he leaves behind a wife, Racquel, and children, William, Wynter and Lisa, all of whom had adopted the New Orleans community as their own even though Smith grew up in New York and played at Ohio State.

          The Yankees cap was rarely far from Smith’s head in his nine years with the Saints, and his Buckeyes gear proudly displayed in his locker. But the New Orleans community and the Saints franchise became a big part of who he was. And the feeling was mutual.

          From a pure football standpoint, I always found Smith to be more of a mauler than an athletic marvel. But nobody made offensive tackles work harder from snap-to-snap in practice and games than the stout, 6-foot-3, 282-pounder. I used to talk to tackles Zach Strief and Jon Stinchcomb and Jammal Brown about those tiresome one-on-one practice battles against Smith’s power rush. Even when he didn’t hit the quarterback, his presence was felt.

          The respect Smith earned from teammates and opponents alike has been evident in the outpouring of support on social media over the past 12 hours. A combination of praise for Smith and outrage over the tragedy, from both inside and outside the Saints family. Here is just a mere sampling:

          In a bit of tragic irony, Smith himself implored his adopted hometown to “stop the violence” in a 2012 tweet that read: “Wow, 20 murders in 26 days? New Orleans.. Please Stop the Violence!”

          As Saints spokesman Greg Bensel suggested, Smith can continue to be a leader in that fight, if people can learn from this tragedy.