When Giants linebacker Jaylon Smith jumped into a pile of players on Thanksgiving, landing on Cowboys center Tyler Biadasz, it looked more like a flying elbow in pro wrestling than a legitimate football play. But Cowboys coach Mike McCarthy says Smith wasn’t doing anything dirty.
McCarthy said that Smith — who was drafted by the Cowboys and played for them until they cut him a year ago — was just playing the game the energetic way he plays it.
“If you watch Jaylon play a lot, he jumps a lot,” McCarthy said, via Michael Gehlken of the Dallas Morning News. “That’s something that’s all over the tape. I don’t think it’s out of character for him.”
Smith has been making an impact for the Giants this season and played a season-high 68 defensive snaps on Thanksgiving. That WWE-style move was the play that drew the most attention, but McCarthy doesn’t think it was anything to worry about.