Will Cam Smith Continue Bust Trajectory?

Cam Smith has shown next to nothing over his first two seasons with Miami

The Miami Dolphins’ 2023 second-round pick, cornerback Cam Smith, was hailed as a future cornerstone for the team’s defense. However, as the 2024 season approaches, Smith’s career has been anything but promising, and it’s becoming increasingly apparent that he likely won’t be the player Miami envisioned when they selected him.

With the 2025 Phins having so many questions at the cornerback position, if Smith fails to show again, this could and should be the end for Cam Smith as a Dolphin?

Slow start, slow middle, fast end?

Considering how many injuries Smith has had, how poor he’s played, and Chris Grier saying they can’t ‘hold his hand anymore’, this has to be a make-or-break season for Smith.

While I’m hoping that I am wrong, odds are Smith will flop again this season.

Coming out of South Carolina, Smith was viewed as a talented, athletic corner with the potential to make an immediate impact. His size, speed, and ball skills were expected to complement a defense that already boasted one of the league’s top pass defenders, Jalen Ramsey. However, things have not gone according to plan for Smith in Miami.

In his rookie season, Smith failed to crack the starting lineup, saw limited playing time on the field, and was injured often. Despite being drafted for his ability to contribute immediately, the coaching staff chose to rely on the more experienced players in the secondary.

While Smith’s draft pedigree made Smith’s lack of playing time a shocker, his poor play and inability to stay healthy made it the obvious choice to bench him.

Smith struggled with both technique and consistency, often being out of position or making poor decisions. This can be understood as a rookie. But his inability to stay with faster receivers or break on the ball with the same fluidity as his veteran teammates put serious concerns over his future as well.

The hope was in Year 2 Smith would find his way.

2024 More of the same… maybe worse

Heading into 2024, Cam Smith had a steep uphill battle ahead with the Dolphins making moves to bolster their defense, including adding depth to the cornerback position. But Smith didn’t help himself by again being injured again. He fell quickly to the back of the defensive back group. Then, mid-way through the season he had his chance to get extensive Regular Season action.

This proved to be a disaster. Smith struggled to cover, had multiple penalties and looked out of his league against NFL pros. Then more injuries came, and Smith was shelved on I.R.

You don’t need the Best Football Software to know that Smith’s has flatllined and that he has done to justify first or second season offered any hope that Smith would ever be the guy they hope he would be with their 2nd Round pick in 2023.

The end of the line for Smith?

While the team remains hopeful that he can turn things around, the reality is that Smith’s development has moved at a glacial pace and won’t show the kind of growth that many had hoped for.

I’d love to see him succeed, but the smart bet with the best pay per head is it won’t end well.

It’s difficult to see how Smith will break out this season unless he makes some very drastic improvements and has a total turnaround of his long list of injuries. While it’s not too late for Smith to turn things around, I think Phins fans should focused their hope on Storm Duck, Kader Kohou, and Jason Marshall Jr. to save this defensive back group this year. Go Phins!!!