Opening statement:  “Jeff’s a guy that actually we’ve been kind of watching for the last couple of years.  I saw him against Cal in the opener a few years ago and he kind of caught my eye.  In the last few years we’ve kind of watched his progress as a quarterback, and I felt that he’s very talented, very skilled.  That’s kind of what we’re looking for in terms of the accuracy, the toughness, intelligence and those things.  I had a great visit with him when we brought him in, and that was kind of the clincher.  We felt like if we had a chance at the right time to draft him, that he would be a good addition for us.  I think that he kind of fits what we do offensively.  He throws the ball quick, good decision-maker, he has a good arm.  I was very impressed with him.”

On his size compared to QB Marc Bulger:  “Nobody’s that skinny (joking).  He’s a little broader in the chest.  They are similar in terms of being able to get rid of the ball quickly, and I like his arm strength, his decisiveness, and the fact that he makes plays.  I’m very pleased with him.”

On drafting a quarterback here in the sixth round:  “We felt like there was such value with Jeff at this pick.  Again, when I met him, I spent quite a bit of time with him when he came in, and I really kind of took to him, to be honest with you.  It was a good match.”

On Smoker’s personality:  “He’s like our guys.  He’s very warm and engaging.  He’s very, not soft-spoken, but he’s a lot like the guys that we’ve had in the past.  Humble, but yet very intense.”

On whether the Rams thought about his questionable history:  “Quite a bit.  This is something we were very blunt with him (about) when he came in here.  Obviously this is something that we feel like he was able to fight through and move on with his life, and if we didn’t feel good about that, then obviously there would have been a lot more hesitation if we were to take him.  I think that he deserves the opportunity.  I think he’s done a terrific job.  This is a problem that he had, that he took responsibility for it, and decided to solve that problem on his own, which you have to give him a lot of credit for.  We talked to him a great deal about it and where he was with this.  I feel comfortable with him.”