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Notre Dame linebacker Jaylon Smith, right, would have been in the discussion to be the No. 1 overall pick in this year's draft had he not injured his knee.

(AP File Photo)

ALLEN PARK -- Notre Dame's Jaylon Smith was the nation's best linebacker last season. He was an All-American. He just might have been the top overall pick in the NFL draft.

Then he blew out his ACL and MCL in the Fiesta Bowl against Ohio State.

Now Smith, who might not play at all in 2016, would be lucky to be selected in the top five. He might not even go in the top 10.

But if he does fall out of the top 10, it could become difficult for teams to pass on a player talented enough to once be considered for the first overall pick. Especially teams in need of linebackers.

Teams like, say, the Detroit Lions, who hold the 16th overall pick.

"If he were healthy, could be in line to be the first, second, third pick in the draft," ESPN draft analyst Mel Kiper Jr. said Monday during a conference call with reporters. "Now you're talking about that 10, 11, 16 -- in that area, wherever you want to throw him. Maybe 24 to Cincinnati. (You'd say,) 'OK, well, we're happy to get arguably the best player in this draft, redshirt him, and then know in 2017 he'll be back to being as good as he was before the injury.'

"If that's the medical report they get -- that he can be that good after a year off -- then how do you pass him up when you're in the 15-25 range? Even in the top 10 to 15, let alone later, because he's such a great player when he's healthy."

The Lions have some depth issues at linebacker, where they've decided to part with Stephen Tulloch, their longtime starter in the middle. Tahir Whitehead, who also played the position last season, is a pending free agent.

So if Smith is there, and his medicals check out, Detroit will have an intriguing question to ask itself: Go with another guy who can contribute immediately, and avoid the risk of an injured player. Or take a long-term gamble on Smith, perhaps this year's most talented prospect.

Those kinds of gambles have not paid off for the Lions in recent years. Just consider Jahvid Best, the Cal running back they took in the first round in 2010 even though he was coming off a serious concussion.

He played only two seasons before he was forced to retire because of head injuries.

More recently, Detroit took Oklahoma receiver Ryan Broyles in the second round of the 2012 draft even though he was fresh off an ACL tear. Broyles went on to miss a combined 16 games the next two years, after suffering another ACL tear and a ruptured Achilles tendon.

He was released after three seasons and just 32 catches.

But those picks were made by Martin Mayhew, who has since been fired as general manager of the Lions. His replacement, Bob Quinn, will be calling the shots this year.

And Smith is an intriguing call to make, especially since he plays a position of such need.

He was the nation's top high school linebacker coming out of Fort Wayne, Ind., then started all 13 games as a true freshman at Notre Dame and later blossomed into an All-American. He hit triple-digits in tackles each of the past two years, and had nine TFLs both of those seasons as well.

He won the Butkus Award last year as the land's top linebacker.

Smith has an estimable combination of size, at 6-foot-3 and 229 pounds, and athleticism. And the Lions are looking to get more athletic, after looking old and slow during the first half of last season.

"You're drafting a guy you can say is the No. 1 player in the draft at 11, or wherever you draft him, and you're getting arguably the best player in the draft -- who you're just going to wait a year on," Kiper said.

If the Lions go another direction with their first-round pick, they'll still have to consider adding a starting-caliber linebacker, especially if they don't find one in free agency. Kiper said Alabama's Reggie Ragland would fit the bill.

Ragland, the SEC's reigning defensive player of the year, lacks Smith-type athleticism. But his instincts and physicality are so good, he's considered to be an early-contributor for whoever drafts him.

"If you're looking maybe a little bit later down the line, there are a few Day 3 type inside guys," Kiper continued. "Maybe (Oklahoma's) Dominique Alexander, who could actually go Day 2. Terrence Smith of Florida State, who has really good versatility. A couple guys I like coming out of the Colonial Athletic Association (are) Luke Rhodes of William and Mary, and Don Cherry from Villanova, as late-rounders or priority free agents."

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