San Francisco 49ers: Who is linebacker Malcolm Smith?

Niner Noise continues our annual “Who Is?” series on San Francisco 49ers players in 2017. In this installment, we look at linebacker Malcolm Smith and his pending role with the defense this season.

Some may argue the San Francisco 49ers reached in signing free-agent linebacker Malcolm Smith to a lucrative five-year, $26.5 million contract this offseason.

After all, the Super Bowl XLVIII MVP posted a lowly 49.7 overall grade last season, per Pro Football Focus, and has generally been considered on the downward trend since his outstanding 2013 season with the Seattle Seahawks.

Contractually, though, Smith’s contract is only a three-year deal with team options for years 2020 and 2021. And it makes sense why the Niners grabbed him on the open market.

San Francisco 49ers

At the time of Smith’s signing, San Francisco couldn’t have known the team would land former Alabama linebacker Reuben Foster in Round 1 of the NFL Draft. Despite Smith’s shortcomings, he was initially pegged to start alongside linebacker NaVorro Bowman in the team’s new 4-3 scheme.

Speaking of scheme, Smith also has familiarity with defensive coordinator Robert Saleh from their days in Seattle.

This bodes well too, as Smith is now a veteran presence capable of teaching this Seahawks-like system to the remaining front-seven members.

So what else should we expect out of Smith this upcoming season, and are there reasons to expect he’ll improve?

Let’s take a look.

Why He’ll Improve

Smith spent the last two seasons with the Oakland Raiders. And while he did post a career high in tackles (100) and sacks (four) in 2015, his efforts weren’t anything close to what was seen in previous seasons in Seattle.

Part of this could be scheme-related, although both the Raiders and Seahawks used 4-3 formations as well.

Coverage has never been a solid part of Smith’s skill set, as his 2016 PFF pass-coverage grade (43.8) suggests. And yet the Raiders employed him on 537 coverage snaps last year, which certainly exposed his weaknesses a bit more.

Smith is, however, much more stout against the run — posting a respectable 74.8 run-stopping grade, per PFF.

Considering the Niners were wholly bad against the run last year, Smith’s pickup should mark an improvement.

It’s also important to note Smith will turn 28 years old this July and is still in the prime of his career, physically.

So if the 49ers use him in situations where he’ll thrive, we should expect a solid impact.

Why He’ll Regress

The lack of coverage skills all but eliminates Smith from being used as a SAM, or strong-side, linebacker. SAM linebackers are often tasked with covering tight ends. And even though Smith had a lot of tackles the last two seasons, giving up yardage before the tackle isn’t exactly a ringing endorsement.

So that relegates Smith to either the MIKE or WILL linebacker spots. In an ideal world, Bowman would retain a MIKE role, while Foster emerges as the WILL — typically reserved for playmaking linebackers in space.

Eyeing Smith as a starter isn’t likely, but more on that later.

The other part to worry about here is Smith’s apparent regression since his Super Bowl MVP year. One could argue he was the product of an elite-level defense, when Seattle boasted one of the most dominant in the NFL.

This won’t be the case in San Francisco. Despite numerous improvements, the Niners have a long way to go before emulating what the Seahawks had on this side of the ball a few years ago.

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What to Expect in 2017

As far as a roster spot is concerned, Smith is perfectly safe. Cutting him would result in $11.5 million in dead money, and there’s no way the 49ers would dish out that kind of cash for a player not to make the roster.

But an expensive backup, yeah, that’s possible.

This isn’t exactly a bad situation though. Before Foster was in the picture, the Niners lost Bowman and fellow starting linebacker Ray-Ray Armstrong to season-ending injuries. This forced San Francisco to rely on backups like Nick Bellore and Michael Wilhoite for the rest of the season.

And the defense struggled as a result.

Smith is capable of playing both WILL and MIKE positions, so he’d be the first option to back up either Bowman or Foster should either one not be capable of playing. And a regular rotation, especially on run-defense formations, should keep everyone fresh.

Next: 49ers' biggest questions facing the defense in 2017

Look for Smith to fill this role, as well as him holding onto his mentoring abilities for Saleh’s scheme this upcoming season.