Former All-Pro Pass Rusher Aldon Smith Dies at 36

Aldon Smith burst into the NFL and immediately looked like a player destined for football stardom. The former San Francisco 49ers pass rusher, whose explosive start helped carry the franchise to a Super Bowl appearance, died Saturday at age 36.

Born Sept. 25, 1989, in Greenwood, Mississippi, Smith later moved to Raytown, Missouri, where he developed into one of the nation's top defensive prospects before continuing his football career at the University of Missouri.

Smith died earlier Saturday in Northern California. As reported by SFGATE, the San Francisco 49ers announced his death, though no cause was released and authorities had not provided additional information by Saturday evening.

The seventh overall selection in the 2011 NFL Draft wasted little time making an impact. Smith recorded 14 sacks during his first season, then followed with a 19.5 sack campaign that earned All Pro and Pro Bowl recognition while helping establish himself as one of the league's most feared pass rushers.

Candlestick Park crowds quickly embraced the young defender as quarterbacks struggled to escape his reach. His early production helped power San Francisco back into championship contention and ultimately to Super Bowl XLVII following the 2012 season.

Success on Sundays eventually collided with personal troubles away from the field. Suspensions, arrests and violations of league policies interrupted a career that once appeared headed toward long term greatness.

Stints with the Oakland Raiders and Dallas Cowboys followed, yet the dominance displayed during his first few professional seasons proved difficult to recapture. His final NFL appearance came during the 2020 season before his football journey came to an end.

The 49ers remembered more than tackles and sacks while announcing his passing. Team officials described a player whose smile brightened rooms and whose presence left an impression on teammates, coaches and others throughout the organization.

Many former players spend years chasing the kind of start Smith enjoyed almost immediately. Fourteen sacks as a rookie, 19.5 more the following season and a trip to the Super Bowl secured a place in franchise history that football fans are likely to remember long after the final details surrounding his death become known.