James Smith-Williams became the sixth defensive linemen drafted out of NC State over the last three years.

Smith-Williams and teammate Larrell Murchison joined the NFL fraternity Saturday, with Smith-Williams going in the seventh round with the No. 229 overall pick to the Washington Redskins. The former Raleigh Millbrook High standout had quite the path to join the company of defensive ends Bradley Chubb and Kentavius Street and defensive tackles B.J. Hill and Justin Jones, who were all drafted in 2017. Murchison was drafted in the fifth round by the Tennessee Titans.

Smith-Williams played defensive end in high school, but was recruited to NC State play outside linebacker at about 196 pounds upon his arrival. He actually first started off at nickel before making is way to defensive end. Along the way he grew to 6-foot-4 and 265 pounds, while maintaining his speed.

He clocked 4.6 seconds in the 40-yard dash at the NFL Combine — which was the fastest among the defensive lineman — plus benched 28 reps of 225 pounds and had a vertical jump of 32 inches. The achievements weren’t too surprising considering he was a back-to-back player listed on Bruce Feldman’s “Freaks” list on TheAthletic.com.

Normally, such athleticism would mean a drama-free period during the NFL Draft, but draft gurus were unsure on if Smith-Williams was going to be drafted. Part of that was due to various injuries over his NC State career that held back his production, including a foot injury senior year.

Smith-Williams had 20 tackles, one sack and seven quarterback hurries in just seven games played as a fifth-year senior. Not being able to build off his redshirt junior campaign of 9.5 tackles for loss and six sacks created some uncertainty. Smith-Williams didn't think the injuries would affect his draft journey too much.

“[The NC State] coaches rave about this kid and his work ethic,” NFL Network draft analyst Daniel Jeremiah said. “He plays the right side, the left side. He can really hold the point of attack. He’s strong, he’s physical. He plays run to pass a lot in this scheme, so he’s not really just cut loose to rush the passer.

“I think you’ll see even more production from him as he gets to the next level and they free him up a little bit. Only one sack this past season, but I think there’s some more there and I like the value at this point in the draft.”

What isn’t uncertain is the intangibles that Smith-Williams oozes. He was named a team co-captain, earned his degree in Dec. 2018 in business supply chain management and already lined up a job with IBM upon graduation. He also lended a powerful voice in activists’s Brenda Tracy’s “Set The Expectations” movement against interpersonal violence. NC State hosted Ball State last September for the ACC’s first “Set The Expectations” game.

Smith-Williams joins former NC State wide receiver Kelvin Harmon, who was a sixth-round draft choice last year for Washington. Smith-Williams also joins No. 2 overall pick Chase Young of Ohio State as new defensive ends for the squad.

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