Speaking publicly for the first time since his May 15 arrest in Twiggs County, Ga. for speeding and reckless driving, Eagles edge rusher Nolan Smith Jr. called his actions “unacceptable.”
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Smith was caught traveling 135 mph in a 70 mph zone, an incident that came four years after Smith was arrested in Barrow County, Ga., for speeding in a construction zone while driving on a suspended license.
“I apologized to the organization, and I’ll make that apology now,” Smith said Monday after Eagles practice. “I represent the Eagles no matter where I go, Georgia, Florida, it doesn’t matter. That’s one of the ones that I own up and I apologize for. It’s just like that. We make mistakes and it can’t happen again and that’s unacceptable. I did apologize to Howie [Roseman], I did apologize to Mr. Lurie, and I can’t let my teammates down like that. They hold me to a different accountability on and off the field.”
Smith, 25, said “nothing came from” the May arrest. A court date was originally set for July 14, but Smith would not need to appear in court if he paid the associated fines. After his 2022 arrest, Smith was accepted into a pretrial diversion program as part of a plea negotiation.
Smith is coming off an injury-plagued 2025 season with the Eagles. After undergoing surgery to repair a torn triceps following the Super Bowl, an aggravation in Week 3 forced him to miss five games. Smith called last season “frustrating” and said “all offseason I was just thinking about 18, just make it through the 18 [weeks].”
Smith said he is feeling stronger now and even put on a few pounds of muscle.
The Eagles remade their edge rushing corps in the offseason. Smith and Jalyx Hunt are the two returning players from last year’s roster. The depth chart has a new player at the top in Jonathan Greenard, who is expected to miss the majority of training camp after suffering a pectoral injury. Greenard’s absence has meant a lot more first-team work for Smith, who may end up behind Hunt in the pecking order when the group is at full strength.
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Greenard, Smith said, brings a little bit of the Brandon Graham “aspect” to the unit. “OGs bring a different mindset,” Smith said. He has picked Greenard’s brain about the new Eagle’s playing past, and players he previously played with. Behind the top trio on the edge is Arnold Ebiketie and A.J. Epenesa, who complete what could be a pretty versatile group.
Smith had just three sacks in 12 games last season after 6½ in 16 games in 2024. The Eagles elected to pick up Smith’s fifth-year option in late April, the same day they did the same for their other 2023 first-round pick, Jalen Carter. Smith’s salary on the fifth year in 2027 will be just over $13.7 million, but he is slated to be a free agent after next season and it’s unclear if he’ll be extended by the Eagles before then.
Smith called the option being picked up by the Eagles “just another year to play football and showcase my talents.”
“Down by down, play by play, just play football, play free,” Smith said. “It’s a game you loved as a kid, it was taken away from me for six weeks last year, and I’m just happy to be able to play. Kind of just think about what my mama used to tell me: ‘You don’t make no plays, you don’t eat.’”
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