KSL UNRIVALED

Bruce Smith’s Quarterback Graveyard Features A Proud Scott Mitchell

Oct 31, 2021, 12:34 AM

Scott Mitchell - Detroit Lions...

28 Sep 1997: Quarterback Scott Mitchell #19 of the Detroit Lions during the Lions 26-15 win over the Green Bay Packers at the Pontiac Silverdome in Pontiac, Michigan. (Credit: Jonathan Daniel /Allsport / Getty Images)

(Credit: Jonathan Daniel /Allsport / Getty Images)

SALT LAKE CITY, Utah – Halloween is a great time of year and people can get very creative with decorating their homes or dressing up.

Recently, Cleveland Browns defensive stud Myles Garrett decorated his home with headstones of quarterbacks he has faced this year.

Garrett is leading the NFL in sacks at 9.5 and he wanted to show off to his neighbors how dominant he has been all year in a very creative way.

Well… Hall of Famer and Buffalo Bills great Bruce Smith one-upped the young Garrett with a much more impressive quarterback sack graveyard.

Smith had 200 career sacks and that includes many Hall of Famers like Dan Marino, Steve Young, Joe Montana, and many others. In total, there were 79 headstones.

One of the many others just so happens to be KSL Sports’ Scott Mitchell. He was one of 200 sacks allowed by Smith when he was on the Detroit Lions.

Mitchell took great pride in being sacked by the Hall of Famer and loved this idea as it showed how dominant Smith was in his 19-year NFL career. One specific moment, Mitchell remembers vividly is not a sack by Smith but a hit he took.

“The crazy part about it is you’d think ‘I wouldn’t want to be part of the graveyard,’ but everyone is in that graveyard and it is Bruce Smith. He is the guy you’d want to get sacked by. I have to tell you that Bruce Smith hit me one time when I threw an interception,” Mitchell said. “After an interception, you look for the defensive lineman, so I am back there and have everything covered and it looks like the DB is going to get tackled. All of a sudden he cuts back and I am like, ‘Shoot, I gotta go chase this guy.’

“I took one step and turned to my left and Bruce Smith hit me. He basically dropped me and I was laying on the ground and the next thing I knew I was standing there and next I am on the ground. Bruce Smith leans over and actually helps me up off the ground. He hit me so hard that he bent my facemask to where my cheek pads didn’t touch the helmet. It didn’t hurt that was the crazy part about it.”

There are probably dozens of stories like this one as Smith sacked anyone and everyone from the league. There should be no embarrassment when one of the all-time greats flexes to show how dominant they were in a fun way.

Tune into KSL Unrivaled every Monday through Friday, 7-9 p.m., or subscribe to the podcast. Also, download the all-new KSL Sports app on iOS or Android

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Bruce Smith’s Quarterback Graveyard Features A Proud Scott Mitchell