The Cowboys gave Aldon Smith another chance in the NFL by signing him to a one-year deal earlier this month. Although the Cowboys have been known to take chances on players with off-the-field issues, the move surprised many. Smith remains indefinitely suspended by the NFL, so it’s not a given that he’ll be allowed to take the field in 2020.
Smith has reportedly been clean and sober for the past nine months. In an interview with Jay Glazer of FOX Sports (Twitter link), Smith opened up about his troubled past and vowed to make the most of his opportunity.
“I would say 2018 was a tough year,” Smith confessed. “In that year, I was in a really dark place…I was sleeping under a car for some nights because my sickness took me there. And I had a home to sleep in. But I was in such a dark place that I didn’t see myself deserving anything other than that.”
Now, Smith will look to get back to his All-Pro form in Dallas. A refresher: Smith managed 14 sacks as a rookie in 2011 and earned First-Team All-Pro honors in 2012 as he registered 19.5 sacks and helped the Niners reach Super Bowl XLVII.
Here’s more from the NFC East:
- The Eagles seem likely to target wide receivers in the draft, but Dave Zangaro of NBC Sports believes that they should also explore veteran options in free agency. Recently, the Eagles have watched receivers like Robby Anderson and Breshad Perriman signed to cheaper-than-expected contracts and Zangaro feels that Howie Roseman should take advantage of WR value deals in the next wave. Still, it’s important to note the Eagles’ cap limitations – although they have ~$30MM to work with in 2020, the Birds are way over the cap for 2021. That means they’ll have to try for one-year deals with most free agents.
- Even if the Giants want to trade back from No. 4, the offers will probably be disappointing, SNY’s Ralph Vacchiano writes. If the Lions move back from No. 3 by trading with the Chargers or Dolphins, Vacchiano reasons that the other club will be fine with standing pat – that means the Giants wouldn’t get a whole lot for their choice. Even though the Giants have multiple needs to address, staying at No. 4 wouldn’t necessarily be a bad thing. With that pick, they could have the opportunity to take any non-QB besides Ohio State’s Chase Young. In that scenario, versatile Clemson defender Isaiah Simmons and Iowa tackle Tristan Wirfs would both be there for the taking.
- The Redskins are among the clubs with interest in Utah State’s Jordan Love. The Patriots, Saints, Packers, Chargers, and Dolphins are also intrigued by Love’s pure mechanics and it’s possible that he could wind up as a first-round choice.
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The move may have surprise many, but Smith’s agent shopped him to all of the teams at the combine. “Blogging the boys” Had an in-depth audio interview with the agent that was quite informative. He also is the agent for LVE, and spoke favorably about his current condition, as well as LV’s draft day.
I don’t think eagles have to WR in rd1. They can add to defense and take a WR rd2
i think they need to if one of the top 4 guys is there, barring a crazy drop from someone else like Tua.
Zangaro doesn’t seem to understand that GMs that get burned on FA signings are reluctant to wade back into those waters. Howie is unlikely to pursue any FA WR for a while after how things worked out with Ashton Jeffrey.