The Brees & Payton Era- Franchise Legend
- Saints Hall of Fame
Will Smith
- Position
- DEDefensive Line
- Number
- #91
- Saints years
- 2004–2012
- Era
- The Brees & Payton Era
- Franchise
- New Orleans Saints
Honors
- Super Bowl XLIV Champion
- New Orleans Saints Hall of Fame
- Pro Bowl
Why he’s a legend
The legacy
Will Smith was the eighteenth pick of the 2004 draft and started at defensive end for nine seasons, all of them in New Orleans. He was the leading pass rusher on the Super Bowl XLIV team and one of only two defensive linemen in franchise history with more than sixty sacks. He was killed in New Orleans in April 2016, at 34.
Why he matters
- He led the championship defense in sacks and was a starter for every game of the 2009 postseason run.
- His 67.5 sacks are among the highest career totals in franchise history.
- A Pro Bowl selection in 2006, the season the Saints returned to the Superdome and reached the NFC Championship Game.
- Nine seasons with one club, from the last Haslett teams through the championship and into the rebuild.
Defining moment
Super Bowl XLIV
2009 season
Smith started at defensive end in the franchise’s only championship, on a defense that forced two turnovers against Peyton Manning, including the interception Tracy Porter returned 74 yards to end the game.
Career statistics
Current through the 2012 season
With the Saints
- Sacks
- 67.5
- Seasons
- 9
- Draft
- 2004, 18th overall
Where he ranks
- #4All-Time Saints Sacks67.5Saints all-time
Honors & accolades
Championships & enshrinement
- Super Bowl XLIV Champion2009 season
- New Orleans Saints Hall of Fame
Selections & records
- Pro Bowl2006
Career timeline
9 seasons in the NFL, 9 of them in New Orleans.
- 2004New Orleans SaintsDrafted 18th overall out of Ohio State
- 2005New Orleans Saints
- 2006New Orleans SaintsPro Bowl selection; Saints reach the NFC Championship Game
- 2007New Orleans Saints
- 2008New Orleans Saints
- 2009New Orleans SaintsSuper Bowl XLIV Champion
- 2010New Orleans Saints
- 2011New Orleans Saints
- 2012New Orleans SaintsFinal NFL season
Era context
What the league looked like while Will Smith played it. Raw totals across eras are not like-for-like.
Ditka to Haslett
1997–2005
The first playoff win, a franchise-altering trade, and then the storm.
- Sixteen-game seasons throughout; the 2004 emphasis on illegal contact re-opened the passing game league-wide.
- The 2005 Saints played no home games in New Orleans, splitting a nomadic season between San Antonio and Baton Rouge.
- Free agency and the cap were fully mature, shortening the typical tenure of a star player with one team.
The Brees & Payton Era
2006–2020
A quarterback nobody else wanted, a coach nobody had hired, and a Super Bowl.
- The most pass-friendly rules environment in NFL history to that point; raw passing totals from these years dwarf every earlier era.
- Sixteen-game seasons throughout, with a 12-team playoff field from 2020.
- The franchise won seven division titles in this span, including four consecutive from 2017 to 2020.
Data & sources
Statistics on this profile are current through the 2012 season.
- A verified season-by-season sack line is not compiled in this profile, so no season table is shown.
