If you are within 6 months of a birthday the rates are based on your closest birthday (in Canada they are and I can't see any reason they would do things differently in the US). A lot of major companies offer coverage and there is nothing wrong with that coverage in most cases. The issues are (a) what if you leave that company and are uninsurable due to a medical issue (b) does the company provide enough coverage for you.
(a) is easy enough to work with at the time of leaving (again this is in Canada) as you have some time to keep your group policy in place. The insurer will rate you as a smoker no matter what in these cases, but you now own the coverage and there is no medical to complete.
In the case of (b) it still works, just make sure that if there is not enough coverage there that you buy something in addition. I would be conservative with the payout for the company policy. I say this not because they won't pay you, but because you ought not rely on suffering an "accidental death" thereby getting a larger payout. Just take the base coverage and make sure that will meet your needs. If the payout is higher it's better than the alternative!
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