Aldon Smith


Aldon Jacarus Smith is an American former professional football player in the National Football League. He played college football for the Missouri Tigers and was selected by the San Francisco 49ers with the seventh overall pick in the 2011 NFL draft. Smith was a first-team All-Pro and a Pro Bowl selection as an outside linebacker with the 49ers in 2012. He also played defensive end for the Oakland Raiders and Dallas Cowboys.

Early life

Smith was born in Greenwood, Mississippi. He attended Raytown High School in Raytown, Missouri, where he played for the Raytown Bluejays high school football team. As a senior, Smith recorded 60 tackles, 21 tackles for loss, 12 sacks, while adding seven forced fumbles, one blocked punt, and a safety on defense, while on offense, he caught 34 passes for 570 yards and four touchdowns as a tight end.
Considered only a three-star recruit by the Rivals.com recruiting network, Smith was considered the No. 5 overall prospect in the state of Missouri as well as the No. 27 strongside defensive end in the nation. He chose Mizzou over Nebraska, Kansas, and Kansas State, among others.

College career

Smith played for the Missouri Tigers football team under head coach Gary Pinkel while attending the University of Missouri from 2008 to 2010. After being redshirted as a freshman in 2008, Smith started 11 of 13 games at defensive end in 2009. He finished the season with 60 tackles and 11 sacks. Smith was named the Big 12 Defensive Freshman of the Year and a first-team Freshman All-American. As a sophomore in 2010, he played in nine games, recording 48 tackles and six sacks.
After the season, Smith announced that he would forgo his final two years of eligibility and enter the 2011 NFL draft.

College awards and honors

  • 2009 First-team Freshman All-American
  • 2009 Big 12 Defensive Newcomer of the Year
  • 2009 Big 12 Defensive Freshman of the Year
  • 2009 Hendricks Award Watch List
  • 2009 Second-team All-Big 12
  • 2009 Honorable mention All-Big 12
  • 2009 Team Defensive Lineman of the Year Award
  • 2009 Team Freshman of the Year Award

    Professional career

Pre-draft

Playing as a defensive end at Missouri, Smith was considered a "DE/OLB prospect" by most NFL scouts and was considered a strong edge run defender as 4–3 end or 3–4 linebacker. Many scouts had compared him to DeMarcus Ware. Prior to the 2011 NFL draft, Smith was projected to be selected in the mid-late first round by mock draft analysis.

San Francisco 49ers

2011 season

The San Francisco 49ers drafted Smith in the first round with the seventh overall pick.
Smith did not start but made his NFL debut in the season-opening 33–17 victory over the Seattle Seahawks, recording a pass deflection. Three weeks later against the Philadelphia Eagles, Smith recorded five tackles and his first 1.5 sacks on Michael Vick in the narrow 24–23 victory. Over the next two weeks, Smith would win the Pepsi NFL Rookie of the Week in victories against the Tampa Bay Buccaneers and Detroit Lions. After a strong October, Smith became the first 49ers player since linebacker Patrick Willis in 2007 to earn the NFL Rookie of the Month award; Smith recorded 13 tackles and 6.5 sacks, including one that forced a safety as he helped the 49ers to a 6–1 record.
During a Week 15 20–3 victory over the Pittsburgh Steelers on Monday Night Football, Smith recorded four tackles and 2.5 sacks. He also surpassed Charles Haley for the 49ers record for most sacks by a rookie in a single season with 13.0 sacks.
Smith finished his rookie year with 37 total tackles, 14 sacks, four pass deflections, two forced fumbles, and a fumble recovery in 16 games. He was half a sack shy of tying the all-time rookie sack record held by defensive end Jevon Kearse despite not starting a single game in his rookie season. Smith was named Defensive Rookie of the Year by Pro Football Writers of America, and finished second to Von Miller for the Associated Press NFL Defensive Rookie of the Year Award. Smith was named to the NFL All-Rookie Team.

2012 season

After being used only as a situational pass rusher throughout his rookie year, Smith became a full-time starter in 2012.
During the season-opening 30–22 road victory over the Green Bay Packers, Smith recorded four tackles and sacked Aaron Rodgers once. In the next game against the Detroit Lions, Smith recorded six tackles and 1.5 sacks as the 49ers won by a score of 27–19. Two weeks later, he had two sacks as the 49ers shut out the New York Jets on the road by a score of 34–0. During a Week 11 32–7 victory over the Chicago Bears, Smith recorded seven tackles, 5.5 sacks, and two fumble recoveries. He was named NFC Defensive Player of the Week due to his spectacular performance. In the next game against the New Orleans Saints, Smith surpassed Reggie White as the fastest player in league history to record his 30th career sack, doing so in 27 games. Smith was named NFC Defensive Player of the Month for November. The following week against the St. Louis Rams, Smith broke another of White's records by recording 31.5 sacks in his first two seasons. In that same game, Smith tied Fred Dean's franchise record of 17.5 sacks in a season. During a Week 15 41–34 road victory over the New England Patriots, Smith recorded a tackle, a pass deflection, and his first NFL interception off of Tom Brady. Smith was named to the Pro Bowl and earned First Team All-Pro honors.
File:Aldon Smith blocks Ed Dickson.jpg|thumb|200px|left|Smith takes on block by tight end Ed Dickson in Super Bowl XLVII
Smith finished his second professional season with 19.5 sacks, 66 tackles, three forced fumbles, an interception, and a pass deflection in 16 games and starts. He broke Cedrick Hardman's 49er's franchise record of 18 sacks in one season, which Hardman set in 1971, a 14-game NFL season. The 49ers went on to appear in Super Bowl XLVII. In the game, Smith had two combined tackles as the 49ers narrowly lost to the Baltimore Ravens by a score of 34–31.
On the NFL Network's NFL Top 100 Players of 2013 ranking, players voted Smith as the seventh-best player in the league entering the 2013 season, which made him the second-highest-ever debut and second-highest defensive player on the list, both behind J. J. Watt. Smith was voted the San Francisco 49ers MVP in 2012.

2013 season

Smith got off to a fast start in 2013, recording 18 tackles and 4.5 sacks in the first three games. However, on September 20, he was involved in a single-vehicle accident in San Jose, California. He was subsequently arrested on suspicion of driving under the influence and possession of marijuana. After a Week 3 27–7 loss to the Indianapolis Colts, Smith voluntarily entered a rehabilitation facility, to be put onto the non-football injury list with an indefinite leave of absence.
Smith missed five games while in rehabilitation. He returned to the team in Week 10 against the Carolina Panthers, but in a backup role, and did not start a game until Week 13 against the St. Louis Rams. Smith ended the season strong, finishing with 34 tackles and 8.5 sacks in 11 games and eight starts. Despite his limited playing time, Smith was ranked #33 in the NFL Top 100 Players of 2014.

2014 season

Smith served a nine-game suspension for violating the NFL's substance abuse and personal conduct policies. He was reinstated in Week 11.
On August 7, 2015, following an arrest for his third DUI, Smith was released by the 49ers.

Oakland Raiders

2015 season

On September 11, 2015, Smith signed a one-year contract with the Oakland Raiders.
Smith made his Raiders debut in the season-opening loss to the Cincinnati Bengals and recorded two tackles. Two weeks later against the Cleveland Browns, Smith got his first start of the year and finished the 27–20 road victory with two solo tackles and two pass deflections. In the next game against the Chicago Bears, he recorded a season-high six tackles and his first sack of the season as the Raiders narrowly lost on the road by a score of 22–20. Smith played his last game of the season in Week 10 against the Minnesota Vikings and finished the 30–14 loss with three tackles and a sack. Two days later, the NFL issued Smith a one-year suspension due to a hit-and-run incident that occurred on August 6, 2015.
Smith finished his first season with the Raiders with a total of 28 tackles and 3.5 sacks in nine games and seven starts.

2016 and 2017 seasons

On April 4, 2016, Smith re-signed with the Raiders. On October 27, he applied for reinstatement. However, no reinstatement occurred, resulting in Smith sitting out the entire 2016 and 2017 NFL seasons.
Following an alleged domestic violence incident, the Raiders released Smith on March 5, 2018.

Dallas Cowboys

On March 14, 2020, it was reported Smith was "in the process" of applying for reinstatement from an indefinite league suspension. He signed a one-year contract with the Dallas Cowboys on April 2, after impressing with his conditioning and size. On May 26, Smith was conditionally reinstated by the NFL and was cleared to take place in the Cowboys' virtual off-season program.
During the season-opening 20–17 road loss to the Los Angeles Rams on Sunday Night Football, Smith played in a regular season game for the first time since November 15, 2015. He tied for a team-high 11 tackles, had his first sack of the season, and had two quarterback hits on Jared Goff. Two weeks later against the Seattle Seahawks, Smith sacked Russell Wilson thrice, had two tackles for loss, four quarterback hits, and a pass deflection in the 38–31 road loss. After posting four sacks in the first three games, Smith's production decreased considerably in the following weeks and he also was limited with a knee injury. His time on the field was reduced in favor of playing defensive end Randy Gregory. During a Week 14 30–7 road victory over the Cincinnati Bengals, Smith recovered a fumble lost by running back Trayveon Williams and returned it 78 yards for his first NFL touchdown.
Smith finished the 2020 season with 53 tackles, five sacks, 35 quarterback pressures, two pass deflections, and two fumble recoveries in 16 games and starts.