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Newsstand: Former Notre Dame LB Jaylon Smith resumes NFL career with Raiders after tryout

Kyle Kellyby:Kyle Kelly•05/12/25•

ByKyleKelly

Jaylon Smith
Former Notre Dame linebacker Jaylon Smith (59) signed with the Las Vegas Raiders on Sunday. (© Orlando Ramirez-Imagn Images)

Former Notre Dame football All-America linebacker Jaylon Smith is set to resume his NFL career. On Sunday, the Las Vegas Raiders signed Smith after he participated in their three-day NFL rookie minicamp on a tryout. The 29-year-old Smith last appeared in an NFL game on Nov. 5, 2023, for Las Vegas, logging 2 tackles. He sat out the 2024 season. 

After he suffered a devastating knee injury in the final game of his Notre Dame career, Smith slid to the 34th pick in the 2016 NFL Draft. He spent five full seasons with the Dallas Cowboys before they released him midway through year six. 

In 2021, Smith also played for the Green Bay Packers and Giants, with his stay in New York lasting through the 2022 season. He began the 2023 campaign with the New Orleans Saints before ending up with the Raiders in November 2023. Las Vegas cut him less than three weeks later, so Smith spent the end of the season on the Steelers practice squad. 

Smith has collected 626 tackles in 88 games in his NFL career and made over $33 million.

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Notre Dame Quote of the Weekend

“We had contributions from pretty much every spot on the field, which is kind of unusual. It was a really good performance all around. Coming out of a week of exams, you never quite know. But I thought our energy was terrific, and the focus of our guys was great.” (South Bend Tribune)

— Irish men’s lacrosse coach Kevin Corrigan after his team beat Ohio State in the first round of the NCAA Tournament.

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