Most focus ahead of the 2023 NFL Draft in regards to the New England Patriots’ 14th overall pick has been on wide receivers, cornerbacks and offensive tackles, but the team is bringing another potential first-rounder to the facility Thursday.

The Patriots are hosting undersized-but-athletic Georgia edge defender Nolan Smith on a pre-draft visit, KPCR2’s Aaron Wilson reported Thursday morning. Smith is a projected first-rounder who ranks 18th in NFLMockDraftDatabase.com’s consensus big board.

The 6-foot-2, 238-pound defender ran a blazing 4.39-second 40-yard dash at the NFL Scouting Combine with a 1.47-second 10-yard split, 41.5-inch vertical leap and 10-feet, 8-inch broad jump. He was the top prospect in the 2019 recruiting class.

Smith’s 2022 season ended early due to a torn pectoral muscle. He played just 188 snaps over eight games and registered 19 pressures and 15 defensive stops, per PFF. In 2021, over 499 snaps in 14 games, Smith had 28 pressures and 27 defensive stops.

Smith has incredible athletic ability for his size, but A to Z Sports’ Tyler Browning also notes that the Georgia outside linebacker “has shown he can two gap on the edge. A bit light in the pants so his anchor isn’t reliable against the run. His lateral mobility allows him to shoot gaps and get in the backfield quickly.”

The Patriots historically have preferred bigger edge defenders. Current outside linebacker Matthew Judon is 6-foot-3, 261 pounds. Willie McGinest was 6-foot-5, 268 pounds, and Mike Vrabel and Rob Ninkovich were both 260 pounds. Players who typically lined up at defensive end in New England like Chandler Jones, Trey Flowers and Deatrich Wise all are 265 pounds or bigger.

But New England also rosters Josh Uche, who measured in at 6-foot-1, 245 pounds at the NFL Scouting Combine in 2020 before the Patriots made him a second-round pick. Uche had a major breakout season in 2022 with 56 total pressures and 11.5 total sacks in just 285 pass-rush snaps. He finished first in PFF’s pass-rush productivity metric in 2022 and was fourth in pass-rush win rate.

Smith is slightly taller than Uche, his wingspan is one inch longer but his arms are one inch shorter. Uche has him beat on bulk. Uche also is set to be a free agent after the season, and while it would be smart to lock him up to a long-term deal, New England also has only seen him be productive for one season. It's possible they're looking ahead to the future to potentially replace him.

It’s also possible that New England looks at Smith as someone who could perhaps take on a more versatile role with traits to play off-ball linebacker. He spent just 11 snaps away from the edge in 2022, however. He did drop back into coverage 17 times last season and 71 times in 2021. He has the size and athletic ability to play a role similar to that of Jamie Collins.

The Patriots currently have Judon, Uche, Wise, Anfernee Jennings, Ronnie Perkins and DaMarcus Mitchell on their roster at outside linebacker and defensive end. They could certainly use another edge defender, though it's not an obvious first-round need.

Smith would be a fascinating prospect with high upside to place into the Patriots’ defense. If there’s a player as good left on the draft board at wide receiver, offensive tackle or cornerback, he could probably take on a bigger role sooner than Smith, however.