Last confirmed: Northern Illinois, 2018. No 2026 box-score games on record.
6′1″ · 237 lb · Saint Charles, MO · Francis Howell
Sutton Smith: DE · Northern Illinois · #15.
Closest statistical matches, adjusted for opponent strength.
Sutton Smith
Wins the corner before the tackle can set. This is his third year in the same defensive front at Northern Illinois. One game to point at: 7 tackles and 5 tackles for loss against Western Michigan — Week 13, 2018.
Play style
Bends the edge and wins with first-step quickness. Lighter frame, relentless motor.
Activity vs finishing · season enumeration
What the box score actually says
45 tackles. 0 passes defended. 0 interceptions. 20 TFL.
Counts only, never a rate — splash-event sample sizes this small (interceptions, pass breakups, TFL) are noise as a rate and signal only as a tally.
No outlet on our list has written about him by name this season.
Swipe the table sideways for more columns.
| Season | Team | |||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2018 | Northern Illinois | 45 | 32 | 20.0 | 12.0 | -- |
| 2017 | Northern Illinois | 63 | 43 | 30.0 | 14.0 | 3 |
| 2016 | Northern Illinois | 15 | 7 | 2.0 | 1.0 | -- |
| Career | 123 | 82 | 52.0 | 27.0 | 3 |
Game log · Week-by-week
2018 season · 12 games
Swipe the table sideways for more columns.
| Wk | Opp | TKL | SOLO | TFL | SACK | INT | PD | Note |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Wk 1 | L 7-33@ Iowa | 5 | 4 | 1.0 | 1.0 | — | 0 | |
| Wk 2 | L 6-17vs Utah | 8 | 6 | 4.5 | 2.0 | — | 0 | Season-high 8 tackles |
| Wk 3 | W 24-16vs Central Michigan | 3 | 2 | 1.0 | 0.0 | — | 0 | |
| Wk 4 | L 19-37@ Florida State | 4 | 2 | 2.0 | 1.0 | — | 0 | |
| Wk 5 | W 26-23@ Eastern Michigan | 4 | 2 | 2.0 | 1.0 | — | 0 | |
| Wk 6 | W 24-16@ Ball State | 0 | 0 | 0.0 | 0.0 | — | 0 | |
| Wk 7 | W 24-21vs Ohio | 5 | 4 | 2.5 | 2.0 | — | 0 | 2 sacks |
| Wk 9 | W 7-6@ BYU | 1 | 0 | 0.0 | 0.0 | — | 0 | |
| Wk 10 | W 36-26@ Akron | 5 | 2 | 1.0 | 1.0 | — | 0 | |
| Wk 11 | W 38-15vs Toledo | — | — | — | — | — | — | |
| Wk 12 | L 7-13vs Miami (OH) | 3 | 3 | 1.0 | 0.0 | — | 0 | |
| Wk 13 | L 21-28@ Western Michigan | 7 | 7 | 5.0 | 4.0 | — | 0 | 4 sacks |
| Total | 45 | 32 | 20.0 | 12.0 | — | 0 |
Where his impact shows up on the stat sheet
Sack rate
27%12 sacksTFL rate
44%20 TFLHurry rate
13%6 hurriesPressure-to-sack conversion
67%12 of 18 pressures45 tackles · 20 for loss · 12 sacks.
3 seasons under Rod Carey — 21-18 over that span.
Splits · Per-game
2018 season · 12 games
Home vs Road
| TKL/g | TFL/g | SACK/g | PD/g | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Home5g | 3.8 | 1.8 | 0.8 | 0.0 |
| Road7g | 3.7 | 1.6 | 1.1 | 0.0 |
First half vs Second half
| TKL/g | TFL/g | SACK/g | PD/g | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Weeks 1-77g | 4.1 | 1.9 | 1.0 | 0.0 |
| Weeks 8+5g | 3.2 | 1.4 | 1.0 | 0.0 |
Supporting cast · Scheme
Staff and system around the player
Head Coach
Rod Carey
Pass share
40.4%
375 pass / 554 run
Plays / game
66.4
14 games
Team sack rate
8.8%
455 dropbacks · PBP
Scheme: Run-leaning.
Player standing · 2018
45 tackles in 12 games, about as many tackles a game as a typical FBS defensive lineman who plays every week.
How it ended
Three seasons at Northern Illinois, 27 sacks — drafted at #175 overall by the Pittsburgh Steelers.
His career
He has a stat line in 35 games over 3 seasons.
Coaching lineage · 2015–2018
1 coachPlayed his entire career under Rod Carey.
Where he ended up · NFL
Pittsburgh SteelersEntering 8th NFL season
Pittsburgh SteelersEntering 8th NFL season
