NFL Network analyst Daniel Jeremiah showered praise on former Georgia linebacker Roquan Smith on Wednesday, pegging him for one geographic area in particular.

“He’s so easy to love, when you look at everything he brings to the table,” Jeremiah said in a conference call. “And I think interview-wise, teams doing their background on him, I think that puts him way up there. You look at the Bay Area teams [at Nos.] 9 and 10. That makes a lot of sense for him there.”

If, say, the Oakland Raiders select Smith at No. 10, the former Bulldogs star would report to new coach Jon Gruden in camp. That thought made Jeremiah think back to a certain Pro Hall of Fame linebacker.

“You look at Jon Gruden, having been around Derrick Brooks,” Jeremiah said. “I would think you can see a little bit of Derrick Brooks in a guy like Roquan Smith.”

Brooks helped establish the Gruden-coached 2002 Tampa Bay Buccaneers as one of the greatest championship defenses of all time. The 11-time Pro Bowl selection used his superior football IQ and surprising quickness to terrorize opposing offenses.

Whichever team drafts Smith will dream of similar production. And when that call arrives on April 26, the former Dawgs linebacker will step on stage in person at AT&T Stadium.

Last month, following a decorated three-season career in Athens, Smith penned a letter to Georgia fans to thank them for their support.

“Being a Georgia Bulldog means the world to me,” he wrote. “Just the opportunity to go to such a prestigious university that many people would die to attend is a blessing. And then to be cheered on each and every week by the best fans in the nation, all pouring into every stadium we went to every week in their red and black, is a very special feeling. I’m just honored to have been a part of it.”

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