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Former NFL player Aldon Smith was sentenced to a one-year sentence by a court in North Carolina. He pleaded no contest to a felony DUI charge stemming from a 2021 incident in Redwood City and will begin his sentence immediately. This will be followed by five years of supervised probation.
He was arrested on December 6, 2021, after he crashed into a truck on a freeway. Once the authorities arrived, they found him with marijuana stashed in his pocket and empty bottles of rum and vodka. He appeared to be driving under the influence. The victim of the crash reportedly suffered injuries to their back, wrist, knee, leg, and foot.
He was charged with one felony count of driving while intoxicated causing bodily injury. On January 19, Aldon Smith agreed to a plea deal with prosecutors and was facing up to 16 months in prison.
Aldon Smith's derailed NFL career in review
After not playing last season and being on the Seattle Seahawks' practice squad in 2021, he is already a fading memory in the NFL. However, his football future held high promise when he was drafted in the first round by the San Francisco 49ers. The seventh overall pick of the 2011 NFL Draft was a highly touted prospect and was compared to DeMarcus Ware coming out of college.
By 2012, he seemed to be making good on his promise and was named to his first Pro Bowl. He finished second behind JJ Watt in the top 100 players list for 2013 and was also a First Team All-Pro.
However, the 2013 season would foreshadow his current predicament after he was arrested on suspicion of driving under the influence and being in possession of marijuana. He racked up 4.5 sacks in his first three games but had to go into rehabilitation and missed five games.
The following season, he was banned for nine games for substance abuse and personal conduct issues by the NFL. Later on, he was arrested for a DUI for the third time, following which the 49ers cut ties with him.
The Oakland Raiders took a chance with him, but his troubles would follow him there as well. Aldon Smith was hit with a one-year suspension by the NFL due to a hit-and-run case. He had to sit out the 2016 and 2017 seasons, and the Raiders let him go in 2018 after an alleged domestic violence incident.
He was reinstated to the league in 2020 with the Dallas Cowboys before spending the following season on the practice squad of the Seattle Seahawks. Aldon Smith's NFL career appears to be coming to an end.
