Farewell, Malcolm Smith
Yesterday was a crazy day in the NFL, but it wasn’t a day exclusively dedicated to major moves. There were minor signings, too, and one of those involved Malcolm Smith. Smith, who’d been a backup linebacker for the Seattle Seahawks, signed a contract with the Oakland Raiders.
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Smith’s departure shouldn’t be noteworthy. He played in well under half the team’s downs, and was pretty well down on the depth chart at outside linebacker. Yet the loss of Smith is bound to inspire more grief than that of Max Unger, who is something of a star. This all comes back to sentimentality. This all comes back to Super Bowl XLVIII.
The Seattle Seahawks won the Super Bowl. They really did! I know, I know, they just played in The Big Game, but just one year earlier they won the damn thing. For the first time in franchise history. And the MVP of that game was Malcolm Smith, then and now a reserve linebacker.
This was the guy who found himself in the right place at the right time, put it all together, and helped his team in just about the biggest way possible. Smith is a folk hero. He went to Disneyland and everything.
What this move doesn’t do is hurt the Seahawks on the field. As a player, Smith won’t be missed. But all those memories and the overwhelming unlikeliness of it all have now officially left the building. I suspect Smith will be adored, even in Oakland. But that’s the thing: in Oakland. He was our MVP before he was their linebacker.
We’re happy for Malcolm Smith because Oakland’s a great fit for him. They’re really redoing their defense, and Smith will have every chance to be a big part of what’s happening down there. The Raiders are ready to offer Smith a role far more prominent than anything he’d have had in Seattle. For that, we’re happy.
The relationship between fans and player is simply so different here. Malcolm Smith is our hopes and dreams, realized. If he can be Super Bowl MVP, then you can too! He was the guy, despite the odds being so heavily against him being the guy. As the Seahawks were completing their grand coming out, here was a generic backup emerging as the face of the whole operation. Doesn’t matter who you are, you could be the biggest star on the biggest stage. That’s what this organization can do for you.
Malcolm Smith is off to bigger and better things, but he’ll always have a unique spot in Seattle sports legend. He never played much, but he’s going to be immortalized alongside the all-timers. Farewell, Malcolm. An OLB to some, but to others, an MVP forever and always.