Career Of Eagles' Za'Darius Smith May Never Have Happened Without This

And to think Za’Darius Smith almost didn't make it to the NFL. He thought he’d be in the NBA, so he didn’t play football until his senior season at Greenville (AL) High School. It was after a spring of AAU basketball when he realized there was no way he was going to make it as, in his words, "a hooper."

He was the tallest kid in high school, in a town of about 7,500, so he played the center position, without any point guard skills.

“When I was playing AUU, I was seeing these guys, I was looking up at,” he said. “I’m like, ‘Ah. man.’ I mean, I’m 6-3, they’re 7-foot what? So, no rebounds, no nothing.”

That’s when he made a decision to try football, and if not for the vote of a dozen or so players in his senior class who agreed he could join the football team as a senior, Smith wouldn’t have been on the field for his Eagles debut against the Kansas City Chiefs. He wouldn't have been around to help the Eagles notch their first sack of the season or make four tackles on just 20 defensive snaps.

He wouldn’t have made the impact on the league like he has, with 69.5 career sacks, including the one he shared with rookie Drew Mukuba on KC quarterback Patrick Mahomes in the Eagles’ 20-17 win that pushed their record to 2-0.

Smith Is Grateful For His High School's Senior Class

ZaDarius Smith — Eagles defensive end Za'Darius Smith after his first practice with the Eagles after signing Sept. 5. | Ed Kracz/Eagles on SI

Smith recounted a visit with his high school coach that led him to try football in his senior year. Greensville's football coach had been trying to get him to come out since Smith was in eighth grade, but Smith kept saying no. Then came his eye-opening AAU basketball experience, which led to a visit to the football coach.

“He said, ‘Yeah, I want you to come out, Z, but you have to do me one favor, you have to go ask all your senior classmates if they want you out here because they went through spring training and the summer training,’” Smith recounted after practice last week.

“He said, ‘You ask them and if they say yeah, I’m cool with you coming out.’ So, I had to go ask each and every senior classmate of mine if I could play. There was like 13 guys. Each and every one of them said yeah. The crazy part about it is if they would’ve said no, I wouldn’t be sitting here today, so I appreciate those seniors.”

Smith’s role will grow as the weeks unfold. He didn’t have any training camp and only joined the Eagles after the opener was played.

“I feel rejuvenated, man,” he said. “I’ve been in the game a long time so to go without training camp, it’s really helping me. I can have my legs up under me. You’ll see it first game. We’ll have a talk after the game and see how it went.”

There will be a conversation this week for sure with the affable Smith, and maybe he'll even talk to those players from his senior class who unanimously agreed to let him join them for his final year of high school.

"I probably need to go back and do something for those guys," he said. "I made a lot of money. I could probably help them out a little bit where I’m at in life. Make sure you highlight that if you write any stories, and hopefully they’ll see it."

More NFL: Eagles Rookies Shine On Defense, Led By Drew Mukuba in 20-17 Win Over Chiefs