After joining Indianapolis as a sixth-round selection in the 2025 NFL Draft, defensive tackle Tim Smith feels ready to contribute to the Colts as a rookie – because he played at Alabama.
“Really just prepared me for life, football, anything, man,” Smith said. “Mainly to be disciplined, be who you are, understand what you have to do. Playing at Alabama kind of prepares you for the NFL properly. Like, whatever aspect you can think of, whether it’s on the field, off the field, how to carry yourself, how to speak to others, how to be on time, how to be a leader, how to be a great man in general.”
Smith got five seasons of preparation at Alabama, staying through the change in coaches from Nick Saban to Kalen DeBoer in 2024.
“Like I tell everybody, that was part of the reason why I did stay and return for my fifth year,” Smith said. “Get another coaching style up under my belt, add some more to my person, my arsenal, who I am as a person as well. Going back to, like I said, preparing me for whatever I’m faced with or have to handle in the NFL at the next level.”
Colts general manager Chris Ballard said Smith was a favorite of Indianapolis’ defensive staff.
“We think he can play the one and the three (techniques),” Ballard said. “One of the good things was our coaches had him at the Senior Bowl, so they got a live exposure to, one, coaching him for the entire week, and then kind of the personality, who he was, and then what his talent level was. And so we’re excited to get him.
“I mean, I could feel our defensive staff around the fifth round start circling because they were pretty driven to get Tim, as we were, so we think he’s got a lot of upside.”
Just because he played at Alabama, Smith doesn’t think he’s entering the NFL fully formed.
“Being in Alabama for five years, I played in two-gap defense my whole career,” Smith said. “The first thing I do, I get to the Reese’s (Senior) Bowl, they tell me, ‘We want to see you shoot and get upfield.’ So being able to have that exposure and kind of get that in my mind and process before I do get to the league kind of helped me out a lot, so I got a lot more stuff that I added to my arsenal throughout this process, throughout training, going down to Mobile for the Reese’s Bowl -- just a lot of stuff I can add to my game.”
Smith realizes the predominance of the passing game in the NFL and how he needs to be more than a run-stuffer.
“My ability to push the pocket, man,” Smith said. “I’m big, strong, physical up front, hold the point, don’t get bullied around too much in the double teams. That’s my game right there. I love the double teams. I live for them.
“But some things (the Colts) mentioned we need to work on is pass rushing. That’s one of my biggest things I tell everybody as well. I’m a great defensive lineman, but the game of football, how it’s played now, you got to be able to affect the quarterback, so just working on my pass rushing a little bit more.”
Smith starts work with the Colts at the NFL team’s rookie minicamp on Friday and Saturday.
