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Jaylon Smith: I'm the best player in the draft, I just can't show it right now

Norm Hall / Getty Images Sport / Getty

Just seven weeks removed from a devastating knee injury suffered in the Fiesta Bowl, Jaylon Smith can do little more than meet with team personnel at the NFL Scouting Combine this week.

He may not be able to prove the claim at this moment, but the standout Notre Dame linebacker says he's still the best player in the 2016 draft.

Once thought to be a top-five lock, and even a strong candidate for the No. 1 overall pick, Smith's draft stock is now uncertain at best.

Combine medical tests, according to NFL Network's Ian Rapoport, confirmed Smith is dealing with nerve damage in both his knee and ankle in addition to a torn ACL and LCL.

As a result, NFL teams reportedly believe Smith will be forced to sit out "at least" the entire 2016 season.

Though his unquestioned ability should still have several teams interested in taking a chance on him at some point after the opening round, the draft-day slide will depend largely upon how the knee improves in the coming weeks.

Smith was named a consensus All-American after a standout junior season in which he tallied an impressive 115 tackles and a sack.

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