Let's just get the pleasantries out of the way: the Dolphins beat the Saints Thursday in New Orleans 10-7, to conclude a perfect 4-0 preseason. Everyone did fine, no one crucial was injured, some people will be cut, and then they'll become acorns, and no one will really understand Jeff Ireland's tree analogy all over again.
Sure, we could note that both Chads hung tough and Vontae Davis dinged his knee, but here's the only thing people want to talk about: rookie corner Sean Smith's one-handed interception of Mark Brunell in the end zone.
Backwards, against momentum, with just one hand and a tap-dance finish? Yes, please. And that sort of style, ladies and gentlemen, is the reason we wear Jordans and not Birds.
Smith isn't just special because he's making our draft grades look oddly prescient, or one to watch just because he's shown the confidence and skills to earn a starting spot immediately. Being made of shark parts, wires, musk, and raw talent doesn't hurt, of course, but we don't just love him for his two pre-season interceptions, or because this one came off the Saints' starting punt returner on their best drive, either.
We love him because he looks so darn cool doing it.
Sure, he's a rookie, and he'll make a ton of mistakes in his first season against a tough slate of opponents. But with unusual size for a corner (6'3" with a wingspan to die for), the hands of a recently converted wide receiver, and upside to burn, there's no reason to think we won't see more of this:
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Does his other arm even work? Does anyone care?
Now excuse us while we watch this 8,347 more times.
Janie Campbell loves Sean Smith's go-go-gadget arms. A lot. Her work has appeared in irreverent sports sites around the Internet.
