Aldon Smith is seemingly headed in the right direction after signing with the Dallas Cowboys this offseason. In a conversation with Michael Gehlken of the Dallas Morning News, Smith cited a turning point in his life that led to his comeback to the NFL.
Cowboys DE Aldon Smith: "I got to a point where I was fed up with how I was living my life, and I knew I needed to change." Grandma, who had ALS, passed last year. Her final message was to "do better" and get what he deserved in life.
— Michael Gehlken (@GehlkenNFL) May 29, 2020
Sometimes hardships can motivate a person to put their foot down and move past a troubled part of their life. That is exactly what Smith did as he continued to decline after being the No. 7 pick in the 2011 NFL Draft.
Coming out of college, Smith was faced with a ton of expectations upon joining the San Francisco 49ers. In his first two seasons, he exceeded expectations, combining for 33.5 sacks and five forced fumbles in that span.
Sadly, the Missouri product would begin to have issues off of the field that negatively affected his career on it. Following multiple arrests and violations of the league's substance-abuse policy, Smith found himself indefinitely suspended.
Since the 2015 season — where he had a one-year stint with the Las Vegas Raiders — Smith has been out of the league. While he wasn't playing football, the former first-round selection seemingly continued to delve further into the issues that caused his fall from stardom.
At the least, Smith has recently been finding some clarity in his life, with his grandma unfortunately passing away from ALS in 2019. Now, after signing with the Cowboys this offseason— along with being reinstated to the NFL — Smith is being given another chance to live out his childhood dream. Seeing how he's changed in recent years, it's hard not to root for him to succeed in 2020 and beyond.
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