Field Gulls
Smith played four seasons for Seattle from 2011 to 2014, winning Super Bowl XLVIII MVP in his third season.
The Seattle Seahawks’ birthday celebrations continue with linebacker Malcolm Smith, who turns 36 today.
Smith, who played on Pete Carroll’s defense in his first three seasons at USC, was reunited with his former college coach when the Seahawks selected him in the seventh round of the 2011 NFL Draft.
In his rookie season, Smith was named as the second-string weakside linebacker behind LeRoy Hill, making 16 tackles and two QB hits over 12 games played. Smith had his best game of the season during a Week 10 matchup versus the Baltimore Ravens, recording four tackles, a sack, and a forced fumble to help Seattle to a 22-17 victory.
Smith’s promising performance in 2011 earned him additional playing time in 2012, as he appeared in every regular season game, starting three of them. His first start of the season came in Week 13, when Carroll elevated Smith to the starting lineup to replace an injured Hill. Smith proved to be a valuable presence in the game, notching a pair of tackles in a 23-17 overtime victory against the Chicago Bears. His first NFL touchdown came on a special teams fumble recovery in a 58-0 mauling of the Arizona Cardinals.
This momentum continued into the final weeks of the regular season, as Smith notched a season-high five tackles in a pivotal 42-13 win over the San Francisco 49ers in Week 16.
With Smith’s help, the 2012 Seahawks defense allowed just 15.3 points per game, the lowest total in the league that season. Seattle won 11 games for the first time since 2005, earning the NFC’s fifth seed in the playoffs. Overall, Smith had 22 tackles in 16 regular season games and three in each of the Seahawks’ two postseason games.
2013 was perhaps Smith’s best season in Seattle, as he was named the starting weakside linebacker to open the year. Despite being out with a hamstring injury in Week 3, Smith appeared in 15 regular season games, tallying at least seven tackles in three separate games. Overall, Smith finished his age-24 season with 54 tackles, two interceptions, a pick six, and a sack, helping the high-powered Legion of Boom defense to the top of the league.
The 13-3 Seahawks earned the NFC’s top seed in the playoffs, hosting the New Orleans Saints in the Divisional round. In the teams’ second postseason meeting in four years, Seattle held New Orleans off the board until the fourth quarter, leading by as many as 15 points in a 23-15 win. Smith had five solo tackles and nine overall, playing his part in sending the Seahawks to the conference championship for the first time in eight years.
Seattle and San Francisco battled for the lead all night in the NFC Championship, with neither side leading by more than two scores at any point. With the Seahawks...
