Niners LB NaVorro Bowman to Jaylon Smith: NFL draft won't define you

SANTA CLARA, Calif. – San Francisco 49ers linebacker NaVorro Bowman says he doesn’t pay much attention to the NFL draft. But he’s familiar with the story of former Notre Dame linebacker Jaylon Smith, who was a likely top-five pick before blowing out his left knee in the Fiesta Bowl on New Year’s Day.

Though Smith’s reconstructed knee itself is healing well, he has a nerve issue that will cause him to fall in the draft and likely miss his rookie season – a situation with which Bowman can emphasize, having sat out the 2014 season while recovering from his own major knee injury, suffered in the previous season’s NFC championship game.

So what is Bowman’s message as Smith waits to find out his fate?

“Not pay attention to the draft at all. That doesn’t define who you are and the career that you’re going to have,” Bowman said Thursday. “As far as the knee, man, just have a strong mind and get through whatever the rehab process has to offer, and you’ll be fine."

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Bowman, 27, returned to the field last season, led the team with 150 tackles (124 solo) and made his third Pro Bowl.

Smith’s surgeon, Dr. Dan Cooper, told USA TODAY Sports recently that Smith has “a very good chance of the nerve recovering,” and neither he nor Smith is ruling out the possibility of playing in 2016. But it’ll be months before doctors have a better idea of whether and to what degree his peroneal nerve will wake up, Cooper said.

So, how far Smith falls in the draft will depend on 32 team doctors advising 32 general managers with varying needs and risk tolerance on the odds he’ll make a full recovery. It’s an extreme long shot he’ll be taken in Round 1 on Thursday night, though Smith hasn’t ruled that out either.

“I don’t have time to doubt myself,” he said last week.

Said Bowman: “He’s trying to rehab and I think I heard that he might not be able to play this year. But that comes with it. It’s all about the athlete, what he feels and the mindset that he has. You understand personally, as the person that’s injured, whether you’ll be able to play or not.”

Follow Tom Pelissero on Twitter @TomPelissero.

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