After Saivion Smith decided to forego his senior season at Alabama, he wasn’t among the 254 players selected in the 2019 NFL draft. That made him an undrafted free agent, which led to him signing with the Jacksonville Jaguars.
Now, Smith is heading back to free agency.
According to Ian Rapoport of NFL.com, Smith will be among the Jaguars’ roster cuts ahead of Saturday’s deadline for teams to trim their rosters to 53 players.
Smith played only one season at Alabama after transferring from Mississippi Gulf Coast Community College. He played in all 15 of the Crimson Tide’s games in 2018, making 12 starts and recording 60 tackles. He also collected three interceptions, a forced fumble and a touchdown.
However, Smith had a tough ending to his Alabama career as he gave up several big plays in the Tide’s loss to Clemson in the national championship game, which he then exited with an ankle injury.
Despite that, Smith made the decision to leave a year early for the NFL.
“I thought about it and talked to my family and my supporting staff and we agreed it was time to come out,” Smith told AL.com’s Michael Casagrande in March.
The Jaguars have a crowded secondary that features starting cornerbacks Jalen Ramsey and A.J. Bouye. So it’s easy to see why Smith didn’t have a spot on Jacksonville’s roster.
However, Smith, who is only 21, should get picked up by another NFL team soon.
Jake Rill contributes to news coverage for Saturday Down South. He has covered the SEC since 2016.
